


Iero's Family

by GeesCLUELESSgirl



Series: The Iero series [2]
Category: My Chemical Romance
Genre: Being Apart, Christmas, Difficult Decision, Doctor's Office, Forgiveness, Hospital, Labour, M/M, Mpreg, New Baby Born, Returning Home, Returning to work, Sickness, Truths, Unwelcome Visitor, VERY unwelcome visitor, fear of needles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-02-27 15:13:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 38,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22069078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeesCLUELESSgirl/pseuds/GeesCLUELESSgirl
Summary: Life is getting back to normal for Frank and Gerard...or as normal as it gets up on Iero's Mountain...but then, things were never going to be simple for them, now were they?❤️🖤❤️
Relationships: Frank Iero/Gerard Ieroway (formally Way), Mikey Way/Lucas Iero (OMC)
Series: The Iero series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1588477
Comments: 94
Kudos: 66





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there guys, so I thought I’d jump right in and start posting my sequel. Please keep in mind that Iero's Mountain was basically me indulging my love of a favourite romance novel (by changing it from straight to gay, and putting MCR in it), whereas this sequel is all my own work. I hope you like it even half as much as Iero's Mountain.  
> Please comment, I’d love to know what you think❤️
> 
> 🖤❤️🖤

It was a month since Frank rescued Gerard from Bobby Lancaster's hands, and three weeks since the small, private wedding ceremony, that had consisted of just Frank, Gerard, Lucas, and Gerard's younger brother Mikey, who'd flown up from California for the service, and decided to stay indefinitely.  
The service was held in the neighbouring town of Fort Peck, at the Town Hall. It was short and simple, as neither Frank nor Gerard wanted a big fuss, and ended with Gerard announcing that he was taking Frank's last name, but also keeping his own; he was becoming Gerard Arthur Ieroway...Then the four men had gone for a meal at the Fort Peck hotel, before returning to Iero's mountain as the sun began to set.

As Gerard had now officially moved up onto the mountain, the little house that the school board had found for him would've been reclaimed, but as Mikey was also a teacher, and the school had jumped at the chance of having him on staff, especially since they were down a member, Dottie Lancaster having retired from her position and moved away to be near her son, the house had now been passed onto him.  
Mikey taught the younger children, 5-8 year olds, so some rearranging of staff had been required to accommodate him, but after much debate, things were organised to everyone's satisfaction, and Gerard even got to keep teaching the sophomores and juniors, which was as he liked it.

Things had settled down greatly in Ruth, and the majority of people were now treating both Frank, and Lucas, with the respect they deserved. And of course, anyone who didn't, would be on the receiving end of Gerard's powerful "teacher's finger".  
Frank didn't particularly like being protected, cause he'd always just kind of ignored the stares and harsh words, accepting them as part and parcel of being Indian, but there was no stopping Gerard when he got on his high horse about it, and, to tell the truth, it actually turned Frank on, seeing his 105lb husband facing off against a 215lb man, and having the rancher back down. It was impressive.

That was what was happening right now. They were in Hearst's store, collecting a roll of wire fencing for the new chicken coop that Frank was building for Gerard, and a man by the name of Jack Urban, a rancher from just outside of town, had muttered something derogatory about Frank, and the fact that his hand was pressed against the small of Gerard's back. Gerard had gotten that look in his eye that Frank had come to know so well, and before Frank could even attempt to stop him, Gerard was in the man's face, even though Urban was a good foot taller than him, and telling him off in that tone that he'd learned from his grandma. And wouldn't you just know it, Urban was looking thoroughly chastised already.

"...and if I ever hear any such words coming from your mouth again, Mr. Urban, you can be sure that we will be having words again. Do I make myself quite clear?..."

Urban nodded, his cheeks red and his head hung low.

"Good!...Now, if you'll excuse me?"

Gerard turned on his heels and marched back to Frank's side. Frank was smirking as he approached.

"You told him."

He chuckled.

"He had it coming."

Gerard murmured, as Frank slipped his arm back around his tiny waist.

"Not saying he didn't..."

Frank grinned.

"But did you have to be the one to give it to him? That guy's got a temper on him. That wasn't the safest person to chew out...it's kinda like poking a sleeping bear."

Gerard giggled.

"And just how many bears have _you_ poked, Mr. Iero?"

Frank squeezed Gerard's side, gaining a small squeak.

"Far more than I care to admit, Mrs. Iero."

"HEY!..."

Gerard barked, indignantly.

"That's Mrs. Ieroway, thank you very much."

Frank laughed loudly, and pulled Gerard in tight against him.

"Well, _Mrs. Ieroway_ , let's get this fencing and get back home, cause seeing you poke that bear...I just want to poke you."

The look in Frank's eyes made Gerard's knees weaken. He swallowed as his cheeks flushed.

"Ok..."

He whimpered softly.

"Let's go."

Frank laughed and guided Gerard toward the counter. Pamela was manning the register today, as her father was at the wholesalers.

"Hello Mr. Iero, Mr. Way...sorry, Mr. Ieroway..."

She smiled warmly.

"I keep forgetting."

"That's ok Pamela..."

Gerard smiled.

"It's taking some getting used to for me too."

Pamela smiled back in relief.

"Did I just see you having a run-in with Mr. Urban?..."

Gerard nodded.

"I'd be careful if I were you. He punched Deputy Clay yesterday for stepping on his foot. The only reason why he wasn't arrested was cause Clay decided to let it go. That guy's got a screw loose, I'm tellin' ya."

"See?..."

Frank said, looking Gerard in the eye.

"I told ya."

Gerard rolled his eyes.

"Oh, for goodness sake...I am not now, nor will I ever be afraid of a man, simply because he is bigger than me, and has a temper. If I was, Frank Iero, don't you think I'd be afraid of you?"

Frank sighed fondly, and looked toward Pam.

"I can't argue with that, now can I?"

Pamela laughed.

"I guess not."

After they'd paid for the fencing and said their goodbyes to Pamela, Frank and Gerard left the store and headed over to Frank's truck.  
Gerard pouted and huffed falsely the whole drive back up the mountain. Frank could tell it was fake, but didn't call him on it.

When they arrived back at the house, Gerard got out of the truck and headed for the front door.

"I think you mentioned something about poking before?..."

He called over his shoulder, without looking back.

"You know where to find me."

Frank watched, open mouthed as Gerard disappeared inside the house. He stood frozen with the fencing half in the truck, and half on his shoulder. He considered putting it in the barn now, then decided- fuck it! and dumped it back in the flat-bed before racing into the house after his sexy-assed husband.

Frank found a trail of discarded clothing on his way to the bedroom, and with each piece he picked up, he got steadily harder and harder, until he opened the bedroom door, and there, on the bed, wearing nothing but a smile, was his beautiful Gerard.

"God Gee...What're you doin' to me?"

He dropped the clothes onto the chair in the corner and climbed onto the bed, crawling over top of the smaller man and pressing him into the mattress.

*

They had fallen asleep wrapped in each other's arms, after making love not once, but three times. After being asleep for a little over two hours, Gerard awoke feeling not altogether well.

Frank's arms were laying heavy around him, and Gerard wasn't sure he could get up without waking him, but he'd try.  
Carefully, Gerard picked up Frank's arm from its place across his stomach, and laid it down between them, then he wriggled slowly toward the edge of the bed.  
Halfway there, his stomach suddenly rolled and clenched. Gerard clamped a hand over his mouth and bolted for the bathroom, no longer concerned with not waking his slumbering husband.

He barely made it in time, before he was vomiting into the toilet, his stomach spasming painfully, and tears slipping from his eyes.

"Sweetheart?..."

Frank's voice sounded behind him, then he was right there, one arm wrapped around Gerard's waist to hold him up as his knees threatened to buckle, and the other hand holding back his hair from his face.

"Aww sweetheart, I got you...Easy now baby..."

Gerard retched and dry heaved for a few minutes after the last of his stomach's contents had been evacuated from his trembling body. Frank held him and cooed to him through it all.

When it was clear that he was done, Frank reached over and flushed the toilet, before gently scooping Gerard up into his arms and carrying him back to their bed. He laid him down and brushed his sweat-soaked hair from his face.

"I'm gonna get you some water. I'll be right back."

Gerard nodded weakly and closed his eyes. His stomach hurt and his throat felt burned and dry. He really hated getting sick, and what was worse, was that school started again in just over a week...he didn't want to leave them short-handed by taking time off ill.

Frank returned a minute later with a large glass of water, and a wet washcloth.  
He placed both on the bedside cabinet and gently helped Gerard to sit up, holding him in place with an arm around his back. The then picked up the glass, and held it to Gerard's lips.

"Small sips sweetheart..."

He murmured.

"That's it, slowly now..."

After a few mouthfuls, that freshened his tastebuds and took away some of the burning feeling in his throat, Gerard nodded slightly, indicating that he'd had enough for now. Frank put the glass down and picked up the cloth. It was wet, but not dripping wet, and he gently ran it over Gerard's face and around his neck. Gerard sighed, leaning against Frank's firm chest.

"How do you feel now?..."

Frank asked, softly.

"Any better?"

Gerard shrugged slightly.

"I still feel a bit sick, but there's nothing left."

Frank frowned.

"You were ok earlier. What brought this on do you think?"

Again, Gerard shrugged.

"No clue."

Frank put the cloth on the bedside and shuffled around until his back was against the headboard, then he carefully pulled Gerard over to sit between his legs, with his back against Frank's chest.

"Comfortable my love?..."

Gerard sighed and nodded, relaxing completely in Frank's protective arms.

"Good. Try to sleep baby...I'll be right here..."

Gerard murmured something, but Frank couldn't hear what he said.

"What was that baby?..."

He peered down at Gerard's face, and found that he was already asleep. Frank smiled.

"I love you Gee..."

He whispered, placing a tender kiss to Gerard's pale forehead.

"I got you. You're gonna be ok..."

Sighing deeply, he rested his head back against the wall and closed his eyes.

"Good night sweetheart."

Then he too, fell asleep.

*

When morning arrived, Gerard woke up alone in the bed. His stomach felt empty, but at least he didn't feel sick any more.

Yawning softly, he climbed out of bed, pulled on a clean pair of boxers, and grabbed the shirt Frank had worn the day before, slipping it on before heading out of the room.  
As he walked sleepily down the short hallway, rubbing grit from his eyes, he could smell coffee and hear low conversation coming from the kitchen. Presuming it was Frank and Lucas, he didn't bother to go back for pants. When he stepped around the corner, he wished he had.

Frank was stood with his back toward his husband, and Gerard could tell he was tense by how the strong, tattooed muscles of his shoulders and back were all bunched up. He had one hand resting on the countertop, next to a steaming mug of black coffee, and the other at his side, fingers clenched into a fist.

In front of him, stood a tall, slim, but clearly muscular man, about the same age as Frank, maybe a little younger, with dark skin, a long, straight nose, heavy brows, and long black hair that fell way below his shoulders. Gerard didn't know who he was, but it was as plain as day that he was Indian, and that Frank was not happy to see him.

Gerard remained silent for a moment, considering whether he should just return to the bedroom, when the man's eyes flicked his way. The look he gave Gerard was almost predatory, and the younger man fell back a step, unintentionally.  
Frank stiffened and turned his head. His dark eyes locked with Gerard's, then he was moving swiftly across the room toward him.

"Gee, are you alright?..."

Gerard nodded, nervously glancing past Frank toward the stranger. Frank followed his gaze, then brought his eyes back to his husband's, taking the younger man's hands in his.

"Don't worry sweetheart. Would you go back in the bedroom please?"

"Frank?"

Gerard's voice sounded weak to his own ears, and he internally cursed his nerves.

"Please Gerard? I will be through in a while."

Gerard nodded softly, tiptoeing to place a light kiss to Frank's lips, his hands on Frank's strong biceps for balance, then he turned and headed back to the bedroom to get dressed.

"He's pretty."

The stranger said to Frank's back, once Gerard was out of sight, and earshot. Frank tensed up again, turning angry eyes toward the visitor.

"Prettier than Beth was."

"What do you want Wolf, cause I know this is not a social call."

Frank growled. Wolf smirked.

"What? I can't just drop by to see my big brother?"

"Half brother..."

Frank stated, coldly.

"And no...you cannot."

"Harsh..."

Wolf chuckled.

"Ok, so the elders sent me."

"Why?"

"Because they wish to speak to you, and I've been charged with getting you there."

Frank scoffed, shaking his head.

"I don't care what they want. Where were they when I was bringing up Lucas on my own? Where were they when he needed somewhere to stay, when I was locked up?..."

Frank growled.

"They never gave a damn about me before, so why should I bother with them now?"

Wolf grinned, eerily resembling his namesake.

"Because, if you don't, they will tear your world apart, starting with that pretty little thing in the bedroom."

Frank snarled, charging across the room and pinning Wolf to the wall by his shirt front.

"You stay away from him, you hear? If you, or anyone from the reservation dares to come anywhere near him, I will rip out their hearts. Understood?"

Wolf wriggled in Frank's iron grip, but finding his hold unbreakable, simply nodded. Frank let go and stepped back, watching as Wolf slid down the wall a little, before righting himself.

"It's no use fighting this _Skah_..."

Wolf coughed, rubbing at his sore neck where Frank's knuckles had pressed against it.

"You know what they are capable of, and the lengths they will go to, to get what they want..."

Frank scowled angrily at the younger man...he hated his birth name and hadn’t used it or even admitted to it since he left the reservation.

"Well, I should be going, but I'm staying in town till Sunday...I trust you will come to the right decision by then."

Wolf turned and left. Frank listened as his truck spun gravel, then drove away.

"Damn it!"

He growled.

"Frank?"

Gerard's small voice came from the doorway. He didn't like that man, there was something about him that set Gerard's teeth on edge.  
Frank took a breath and tried to calm down. He didn't want to scare Gerard. Slapping a smile on his face, he turned and crossed to his unnaturally nervous, and slightly pale looking husband.

"Sweetheart, it's ok...he's gone now."

He pulled Gerard into his chest, wrapping his strong arms around him.

"Who is he?"

Gerard asked, looking up into Frank's eyes. Frank huffed, leaning down to kiss Gerard's soft, pink lips.

"Someone that I don't trust..."

Frank muttered.

"If he approaches you in town, you call me, ok?..."

Gerard nodded.

"I mean it Gerard...He comes near you, you get yourself somewhere public, and you call me...OK?"

Gerard nodded again, swallowing thickly.

"Ok Frank..."

He snuggled against Frank's chest, then looked up.

"Is there any coffee left?"

Frank laughed, stroking Gerard's fine hair.

"I guess you're feeling better then, huh?"

"Yeah..."

Gerard agreed.

"I'm going to go visit Mikey later."

Frank frowned.

"I'll take you."

"I can drive myself."

"Not today."

Gerard sighed, cause he knew from experience that Frank meant business when he looked at him like that. There was no point in arguing with him on this.  
Just then, the front door opened, and Lucas walked in.

"Just saw a truck leave. We have a visitor?"

Frank ground his teeth.

"I'm gonna go get dressed."

Kissing Gerard quickly on the forehead, he turned and went back to the bedroom.

"What did I say?"

Lucas looked at Gerard in confusion. Gerard shrugged. It wasn't his place to say. He stepped over to the counter.

"Coffee?"

Lucas grinned.

"You know it."

When Frank returned, in jeans and a plaid shirt, he smiled to see Gerard and Lucas, the two most important people in his life, sat at the table, each nursing a mug of coffee and laughing over something one of them had said. He watched them silently for a moment before clearing his throat. They both looked up, smiles on their faces.

"Ready to go?"

Gerard nodded, chugged the last of his coffee, then stood up and put his mug in the sink.

"See you later."

He said to Lucas, ruffling his hair on the way to the door, Frank right behind him.

The trip down the mountain didn't take very long, but with every bump in the road, Gerard's stomach churned a little bit more. By the time they reached the house that Mikey had claimed as his own, Gerard was several shades paler, and the second Mikey opened his door, Gerard dashed for the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.

"Gee?..."

Mikey called out, then turned to Frank.

"What's wrong with him?"

Frank frowned.

"Don't know. He was sick last night, but he said he felt better today..."

He followed Gerard's footsteps to the closed door and listened. He could hear the unmistakable sound of puking.

"Guess not."

When Gerard finally emerged from the bathroom, Frank was sat on the third step of the stairs, waiting for him. He stood up and crossed the hallway quickly, taking Gerard in his arms.

"Come sit down baby..."

He led his shaky husband through to the kitchen, where Mikey was busy making coffee. Mikey looked up with concern, but remained silent. Frank sat down, pulling Gerard into his lap.

"I'm taking you to see Doc Brown."

Gerard shook his head.

"I don't need a doctor. It's probably just a stomach bug. Didn't Maggie say something about one going around town?"

Frank frowned, but nodded.

"You're right, but if this hasn't stopped by Thursday, I'm takin' you. No arguments."

Gerard sighed, resignedly. He hated the doctor's. They often wanted to stick him with needles, and he'd had a fear of those since he was a child. He could handle an injection, sort of...but a blood test was another matter entirely. He’d somehow managed to avoid having one so far, but he knew his luck would fail him eventually.

"Alright. But I'm sure it's nothing."

Mikey handed a mug of coffee to Frank, and held out a glass of water toward Gerard.

"Water?...Really Mikes?"

Gerard raised an eyebrow incredulously at his brother. Mikey rolled his eyes, knowing his brother's coffee addiction was even stronger than his own.

"You just puked Gee...you need to hydrate. 'Sides, coffee could make you sick again if your stomach's upset."

Gerard would have argued, but Frank cleared his throat and gently squeezed Gerard's side with the hand wrapped securely around his waist.

"Fine..."

Gerard groaned, accepting the water.

"But I want ice cream later."

Mikey laughed.

"Ok...cause ice cream is a viable alternative to coffee."

He said sarcastically, as Frank chuckled and sipped his drink.

They spent the rest of the morning together, talking about random stuff and laughing over photos Mikey had on his phone.  
Shortly after they'd eaten a light lunch, Gerard barely touching his, he started yawning, and rested his head against Frank's shoulder. He'd tried to move onto his own chair before lunch, but Frank held onto him, and refused to let him go, no matter how much he squirmed. Eventually, he'd given in and relaxed against Frank's chest with a sigh.

"Tired sweetheart..."

It wasn't a question. Gerard was about to shake his head, when another big yawn broke from his lips. Frank smiled.

"Time to go home, I think."

Frank stood up, lifting Gerard up in his arms.

"I can walk, you know."

Gerard whined, but made no attempt to get down as another yawn hit.

"I know you can..."

Frank stated, heading toward the back door. He turned around when he got there.

"Bye Michael. Thank you for lunch."

Mikey waved the thanks away.

"Any time..."

He looked at Gerard, who appeared to be falling asleep on Frank's shoulder.

"You feel better bro...and call me if you have to go to the doctor, ok?"

Gerard nodded, sleepily.

"Ok Mikes."

They all said their goodbyes, then Frank carried Gerard out to his truck and carefully placed him in the passenger seat, leaning across him to clip in his seatbelt.  
Half way from the house to the foot of the mountain, Gerard was asleep.

*

As it happened, Gerard was still being sick when Thursday rolled around, and Frank insisted on taking him to the doctor's.  
Gerard couldn't keep much more than water down, and Frank worried that he was losing weight, and he didn't have that much to lose in the first place.

"You ready?..."

He asked, grabbing his keys. Gerard pouted, but nodded and trailed Frank to the door.

"Lets go..."

Heading outside, he waved goodbye to Lucas as he rode up on his snow white stallion.

"See you later. Call me if there's any problems."

"Sure dad..."

Lucas said back, bringing the horse to a halt and patting his neck, gently.

"You'll be ok Gee..."

He grinned down at his still huffy stepfather, gaining only a shrug in response.

"See you when you get back."

Frank helped Gerard up into the truck, then shut his door, and went around to the driver's door. Before opening it, he turned back to Lucas.

"If that guy from the other day shows up, don't let him in. Call me and lock all the doors...Ok?"

Lucas frowned.

"I'm 16 dad, I'm not a kid any more."

"I know that...but he's not to be trusted. Do you understand?"

"Not really, cause you won't tell me who he is."

Frank sighed deeply, glancing into the truck, and seeing that Gerard had fallen asleep.

"You don't need to know who he is, just that he's dangerous, and I don't want either of you speaking to him. Do I make myself clear?"

Lucas knew that he'd never get his dad to talk if he didn't want to, so he guessed that he'd just have to wait until Frank was ready to talk.

"Ok dad...I won't speak to him. Don't worry."

"It's my job to worry about you, son..."

Frank smiled at him as he opened the truck's door.

"See you later."

He climbed in and started the engine.

Doctor Brown was the only doctor in town currently, so unless you wanted to travel 28 miles to Fort Peck, he was your only option.  
His surgery was located at the very edge of the small town, in what used to be a bakery. It was a small building, with small rooms, and a small-minded receptionist.  
Gwen Howard was in her early sixties, and very much stuck in her ways. She spoke her mind, and wasn't shy about letting people know when she didn't like them.  
She didn't like Frank and Gerard.

"Yes?"

She said icily as they approached her desk. She peered at them over the top of her glasses.

"Good morning Miss Howard..."

Frank said, politely. No need to be rude, even if she was.

"I booked an appointment with doctor Brown. It's for Gerard."

Gwen huffed, and looked down at her appointment book...she was too long in the tooth to learn how to use one of those computer thingies. She saw Gerard's name, written in blue ink in the doctor's messy handwriting. She scowled.

"Sit down. I'll tell him you're here."

Frank nodded once, then led Gerard to the chairs that lined the reception area's walls. There was no one else waiting, so Frank presumed that Gerard would be called in next. He turned to look at the younger man and noticed, not for the first time, how thin and pale he appeared. He wrapped his arm around Gerard's shoulders and pulled him into his side.

"How you feeling sweetheart?..."

He felt the smaller male shudder against him.

"Do you feel sick?"

"It's not that..."

Gerard murmured, quietly.

"I'm...I'm scared."

Frank frowned and turned himself to face his husband, forcing their eyes to meet. It must be serious if Gerard was admitting to being afraid...he almost _never_ did that.

"What are you afraid of?"

Gerard looked down at his hands, twisting together in his lap.

"N...needles..."

He met Frank's eyes.

"What if he wants to take...blood?"

If possible, Gerard turned even paler, just at the thought. Frank grabbed the younger man, and pulled him onto his lap, ignoring the muttered insult from the direction of the reception desk, and wrapped both arms firmly around him.

"I'll be right there with you. And if he does want to take blood...I'll hold your hand the whole time. You'll be alright."

Gerard snuggled against Frank's strong chest, sighing softly.

"I'm also scared of the results."

His voice was small and weak, and Frank would do whatever it took to take his fear away.

"You're going to be ok. I'm sure it's just a stomach flu, or something. I really just wanted to bring you cause I'm worried that you could get sicker from not eating. I bet Doc Brown just says to drink lots of water and rest up..."

He kissed the top of Gerard's head.

"You'll see. Nothing to worry about."

"Gerard?..."

Came the doctor's deep voice from the doorway of his treatment room. Gerard and Frank looked up.

"Would you like to come through?..."

Gerard thought for a split second about saying no, but reluctantly climbed off of Frank's lap, accepted his hand, and followed the doctor inside, once again ignoring Miss Howard's sour stare.

"Take a seat..."

The doctor indicated the two chairs in front of his desk, as he went to sit behind it.

"So, what can I do for you today?"

Gerard swallowed and glanced toward Frank, who nodded softly at him. He sighed, then turned back to the doctor.

"I've been sick every day for the last week. I can't keep anything down."

"I'm worried, cause Gerard doesn't weigh that much to begin with. He can't afford to lose weight because of this."

Frank said, his arm snaking around Gerard's tiny waist and squeezing him, gently.  
The doctor nodded in understanding, then clicked a couple of keys on his laptop. He studied the screen for a moment then looked up with a smile.

"Ok. So let's start with the basics. Would you step on the scales please?"

Gerard looked at the device in the corner. Scales had been his enemy all through Highschool, but they held no fear for him now. Nodding, he stood and joined the doctor at the scales.

"Should I take off my boots?"

Gerard looked down at his DMs.

"Please."

The doctor replied.  
Gerard bent down to untie his laces, ignoring the mild wave of dizziness that drifted over him. Once he'd removed his boots, he stepped up onto the scale. He didn't look at the dial, the doctor did that.

"Ok. You can get down now..."

The doctor headed back to his desk and typed in the results, then looked up as Gerard returned to his seat, having put his boots back on.

"Gerard...when you first came to town and joined my surgery here, we did all of these tests as standard. Do you remember?..."

Gerard nodded.

"Your weight then, was 105.5 lbs, and I told you that it was a rather low weight for a man of your height..."

Again, Gerard nodded.

"But your weight today Gerard..."

The doctor frowned slightly, shaking his head.

"Gerard.. You weigh 96 lbs now."

"I knew it!..."

Frank growled out, turning toward Gerard.

"This is all since you got sick. I can practically see the weight falling off you..."

He screwed his eyes shut for a moment.

"I should've insisted you come a week ago."

"No Frank..."

Gerard placed his small hand on Frank's larger, clenched fist. He felt the tension leave him.

"I refused to come. It's not your fault I'm stubborn..."

He smiled as Frank looked in his eyes, and softened, smiling back. Gerard turned back to the doctor.

"Sorry doc. So, what's next?"

The doctor took his temperature, announcing that it was normal. His blood pressure, which was a bit low, but considering he hadn't been eating, that was to be expected, and then held up a pot.

"I'd like a sample please..."

He pointed to the bathroom that was connected to his office.  
Gerard blushed pink, but took the pot and disappeared into the other room. A minute or two later, he reemerged, and handed the pot to the doctor.

"If you'll wait here please?"

The doctor stood, and left the room with the sample.

"What can he tell from my wee?..."

Gerard muttered, gaining a chuckle from Frank. Gerard turned to him and raised his eyebrows.

"What?"

Frank grinned, putting his arm around the younger man and pulling him against his chest.

"You're adorable."

He laughed, kissing Gerard softly. Gerard blushed and rolled his eyes, but cuddled up in Frank's arms as they waited for the doctor to return.

The doctor was gone a lot longer than they expected, and they started to think he may have forgotten about them. After nearly half an hour, he returned with a confused look about him.

"So doc..."

Gerard asked, lightly.

"Am I going to live?"

He meant it as a joke of course, but when the doctor didn't immediately answer him, his smile dropped and his hand grasped hard onto Frank's, his breath hitching in the silence.  
Frank squeezed his hand reassuringly, and gave the doctor a hard look.

"Dr. Brown?"

The doctor seemed to snap out of whatever trance he'd fallen into, and blinked at them for a moment before speaking.

"There was a...a problem, with the test..."

He looked uncomfortable.

"I'm going to need to run some blood work."

"Oh God."

Gerard was suddenly the colour of paper. Frank grabbed him, and pulled him into his lap, wrapping his arms around him and pressing his lips against Gerard's ear.

"Close your eyes sweetheart. Just listen to my voice..."

He murmured.

"It's just you and me. No one else in the world..."

As the doctor quietly prepared the syringe, Gerard relaxed against his husband, listening to his calming words.

"You are safe, and warm...and I am right here with you. Nothing can hurt you. I won't let anyone hurt you."

Frank nodded slightly to the doctor, as he continued to coo and whisper soft words into Gerard's ear.

The doctor had seen many patients during his 35 years as a GP who suffered from Trypanophobia, and he knew that fast was best. He could see the veins in Gerard's arm quite clearly, and so he quickly slid the needle in, hearing only a tiny hitch of breath from Gerard, withdrew the blood, then removed the needle, placing it in a dish behind him, and pressed a piece of cotton wool over the site, securing it down with tape.

"All done..."

He stated.

"Would you just press here please?"

Gerard lifted his abnormally pale face up out of the crook of Frank's neck.

"I...I barely felt it."

He pressed his finger down on the tape, as Frank gently stroked his back.

"I'm going to send these over to Billings pathology lab straight away. We should have the results by this time tomorrow. I'm sorry I can't tell you what you want to hear right now, but please, try not to worry. It's probably just a stomach flu, so just treat it as such until we know for sure..."

He smiled apologetically at Gerard.

"Until then..."

He typed something quickly into his laptop, and a printer in the corner whirred into life, making Gerard startle slightly. The doctor crossed to the machine and removed a piece of paper.

"This is a prescription for an anti-sickness medication. It should help. Otherwise, plenty of rest, and drink lots of water. As soon as I have the results, I'll call you, ok?"

Gerard nodded.

"Thank you doctor."

His voice sounded fragile and small, and Frank really just wanted to hold him close, and never let him go.

"Dr. Brown..."

Frank began, the doctor nodded once.

"Is there anything Gerard can take, like a vitamin supplement, or something?"

The doctor nodded.

"Yes, there is. When you go to the pharmacy to fill your prescription, ask Jolene for Ensure Clear. It's a clear liquid drink, they do several flavours, and your body should handle them like it does water, and it will help with nutrition, and hydration."

Frank shook the older man's hand.

"Thank you doctor. We'll be waiting for your call."

"Of course..."

Dr. Brown smiled, then turned to address Gerard, only to find that he'd fallen asleep on Frank's shoulder.

"Well. It looks like you should get him home."

He chuckled.  
Frank grinned and scooped Gerard carefully up in his arms, nodded to the doctor, then left, yet again ignoring the receptionist's evil eye. Once he'd placed Gerard in the truck, he thought of going to the pharmacy now, but he didn't like the idea of leaving Gerard alone in the car, especially since he knew that Wolf was still in town, and he didn't want to wake Gerard either.  
He decided to take Gerard home, and get Lucas to stay with him, while he returned to town and collected the medicines.  
Heading back up the mountain, he couldn't help but worry what those results would say.


	2. Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there, hope you’re all well?...thought you might like another chapter, was I right?
> 
> Comments always welcome😁
> 
> Enjoy❤️
> 
> 🖤❤️🖤

Arriving back at the ranch, Frank frowned in annoyance at seeing Wolf's truck parked in front of the house. He couldn't see the man, and that worried him.

Turning to look at Gerard, he saw that he was still sleeping. Frank pulled his cellphone out of his pocket and dialled Lucas' number. On the third ring, the younger man answered.

"Dad!...Where are you?"

"I'm outside. You?"

"In my room."

Lucas then swore under his breath, and Frank heard a loud bang through the phone.

"Lucas?"

"I'm here dad, but that guy's trying to get in my damn window."

"He's what?!..."

Frank growled.

"I'm on my way."

Frank hung up and went to open his door.

"Frank?"

A sleepy voice came from the passenger seat. Frank turned toward Gerard.

"Sweetheart. Stay here. Lock the doors."

Gerard's eyes widened.

"What's going on?"

"Don't worry love. Just stay put. Ok?"

Gerard nodded, glancing at the truck parked a few meters away.

"Is that...?"

Frank nodded, taking Gerard's pale hand in his.

"Don't worry..."

He kissed Gerard's fingertips, offered the younger man a warm smile, then let go of his hand and climbed out of the truck.

"Lock the doors."

Gerard nodded, and as soon as Frank shut his door, Gerard locked it.

Frank went to the lock box in the flatbed of the truck. He opened it with the key he kept on him at all times, and retrieved his shotgun from inside. He loaded in the cartridges, and shut the lockbox, then headed toward the side of the house.

Keeping low, Frank listened for any signs of movement as he crept along next to the wall. Both of the bedrooms were at the back of the house, and as he reached the corner of the building and peeped round it, there was no sign of Wolf, and Lucas' window was open.

"Goddammit."

He muttered, moving toward the window. As he approached it, he heard voices from inside.

"Get off me."

Lucas grunted. Frank peered through the hole. Lucas was on his back on the floor, with Wolf pinning him down, Lucas' own shotgun pressed sideways against the younger man's throat.

"Get the _fuck_ off my son!..."

Frank growled, low in his throat as he levelled his gun toward the back of Wolf's head. Wolf tensed, but made no move to withdraw.

"NOW...unless you want me to blow your Goddamn head off."

Wolf slowly turned his head to meet Frank's eye.

"No need for that..."

He muttered, backing up, the weapon still in his hands.

"Put the gun down Skah."

"I don't think so."

Frank kept his eyes locked on Wolf, his hands steady.

"Lucas...you alright?"

"Yeah..."

Lucas muttered, climbing to his feet.

"Now, you gonna tell me what the Hell's going on?"

Frank grunted.

"Once this piece of shit is off our mountain, I'll explain everything."

"Why don't you tell him now?..."

Wolf asked.

"You've got nothing to hide, right?"

"Nothing..."

Frank replied, through gritted teeth.

"But I still want you gone first..."

He pointed the barrel of his gun toward Wolf's chest, and stepped back from the window.

"Put the gun down, and get out here. Now..."

Wolf turned his head toward Lucas and grinned at him, handing the shotgun back. Lucas frowned, snatching the weapon, and turning it onto the intruder. Wolf returned to the window and climbed out.  
Frank kept his gun trained on the younger man, stepping back, out of arm's reach.

"Lucas. Go out front and check on Gerard for me..."

Lucas nodded, and left his room. Frank nodded toward the side of the house.

"Right...move it."

Wolf smirked and started for the front of the house.

"I'd be willing to bet you won't tell him the whole story..."

He said, conversationally. Frank grunted.

"He probably wouldn't hang around if you did."

"I don't keep secrets from my son."

"Then why didn't he know who I am?...If you tell him everything."

"Because you are nothing to him...or me."

"Ugh..."

Wolf clutched his chest, dramatically.

"You wound me."

"Don't tempt me."

Wolf laughed.

"I missed your sense of humour, brother."

"Half."

Frank muttered.

As they rounded the corner to the front of the house, Wolf several steps ahead, Frank saw that Lucas was stood by his truck, with his shotgun in his hands, as Gerard sat safely in the passenger seat still.  
Lucas nodded to his father. Frank nodded back then prodded Wolf in the shoulder with the barrel of the gun, as the younger man slowed down his pace.

"Get in your truck, and leave. If you set foot on my mountain, or come near any of us again, I will shoot you dead...Clear?"

"Crystal..."

Wolf stated, unlocking the driver's door of his truck, and swinging himself up behind the wheel.

"But it changes nothing. They still want to see you, and I still need your answer by Sunday."

"You have my answer..."

Frank growled.

"Tell them to go to Hell...cause it will be a cold day there, before I go anywhere near the reservation."

Wolf chuckled, shaking his head.

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

He started the truck, waved goodbye to Lucas, who gave him the finger, then drove away.  
Frank squeezed his eyes shut for a moment or two, forcing himself to relax, then turned and walked quickly over to his truck.

"Talk."

Lucas demanded.  
Frank sighed, reaching out as he came face to face with his son, and grabbing his chin, lifting it to see faint bruising across his neck. He released him, then looked into the window of the truck. Gerard sat, shaking and wide eyed, his arms wrapped around his slight body. Frank could feel a headache coming on.

"Let's all go inside. Then I'll tell you both everything."

Lucas nodded, and opened Gerard's door. Frank handed his gun to Lucas, then stepped forward and scooped Gerard up, before he even had a chance to climb down on his own.

"Frank?"

His voice was small and scared, far from the fierce young man that Frank had fallen for. Bobby Lancaster had a lot to fuckin' answer for, that was for certain.

"Everything's ok sweetheart..."

He held his husband tight to his chest as they headed into the house.

"There's just a couple things I need to tell you both."

Gerard shivered slightly. That did not sound good.

*

Gerard was stunned. He sat at the kitchen table, his eyes wide, mouth hanging slightly open, and his coffee, forgotten in front of him. He didn't know what to say, which was rare, or how to react.

"Say something."

Frank said softly, sitting down in front of his husband and carefully taking the younger man's hands in his. Gerard glanced over at Lucas, and saw a mirror of his own shocked expression reflected back at him. He turned back to Frank, shaking his head slightly.

"I...I don't know what to say."

His voice came out much smaller than usual.

"Well I do!..."

Lucas said, angrily, standing up and almost knocking his chair over in the process. Frank and Gerard both turned their attention to the furious boy.

"You should've told me. I had a right to know."

Frank looked miserable, like his puppy just died or something.

"I know you did..."

He said calmly, drawing what comfort he could from Gerard's light touch.

"I just...It was never the right time."

"Bullshit!..."

Lucas spat.

"You could've told me any number of times over the years. I mean, fuck dad!...mom _killed_ herself?...were you ever gonna tell me?"

Frank gently squeezed Gerard's hands, then let them go and stood up to face his irate son.

"I don't know..."

Frank murmured as he approach the boy.

"I just..."

He reached out to touch Lucas' arm. Lucas stepped back, a murderous look in his eye.

"I'm gonna go check the East paddock."

Then he turned and walked out.

Frank's hand was still outstretched, forgotten. After a moment, he let it drop to his side. He still had his back toward the table, and Gerard, as he didn't want to see that disgust in his husband's pretty eyes.

"I'm gonna lose him, aren't I?..."

He muttered.

"He hates me now."

He heard the quiet squeak of a chair moving on the floorboards. A few seconds later, a small, pale hand carefully touched his arm. He turned his head, and his eyes met those beautiful hazel/greens.

"He doesn't hate you Frank..."

Gerard said, softly. A sad smile touching his lips.

"He's just angry right now. It's a lot to take in. He'll come around."

Frank sighed and turned to wrap his arms around Gerard's fragile body, pulling him gently into his chest and pressing his lips to the younger man's head.

"I've just never seen him that mad before. At least, not at me."

Gerard lifted his head from the crook of Frank's neck, and looked him in the eye.

"Give him some time, and space. You just told him that something he thought he knew about his mother, was wrong. If I were told something like that, I think I may be a little put out too."

He rested his head back on Frank's shoulder.  
Frank knew Gerard was right, and Lucas would calm down eventually...he just didn't like the thought of his son isolating himself, especially since Wolf was still prowling around.

"Gerard?"

Gerard hummed his attention.

"You don't hate me, do you?"

Gerard looked up, his brow furrowed slightly.

"How can you even ask that?..."

He pulled back a little and reached up to gently cup Frank's cheek.

"I love you with every piece of my heart...I could never hate you."

Frank leaned into the simple touch.

"I love you too...and I'm sorry I didn't tell you about this before. It was so long ago, and everything that happened...what I did...I really just wanted to forget it all...pretend it never happened cause I'm really not proud of much that I did back then...this least of all."

Gerard could see how much this was hurting Frank, and he wanted to take that pain away...he just didn't know how.

"Frank?"

He stroked his fingers along Frank's jaw.

"Will you..."

He hesitated, still a little coy. Frank raised an eyebrow at him and Gerard swallowed, feeling his cheeks heat up...but he refused to break eye contact.

"Will you make love to me?"

Now, Frank wasn't expecting that, but he would never turn Gerard down...nor would he ever want to.

"Of course..."

He smiled, scooping Gerard up into his arms and carrying him through to their bedroom.

"Is that even a question?"

*

Gerard was curled up on Frank's chest, lazily drawing patterns on his husband's damp skin, while Frank gently carded his hand through Gerard's hair. His eyes were fluttering, and he knew it wouldn't be long before he fell asleep.  
Shifting slightly, he looked up to see Frank already gazing back at him, a relaxed and love filled look in his eyes.

"Frank?"

"Yes sweetheart?"

Frank murmured.

"Did you get those pills Doc Brown prescribed?"

Frank shook his head slightly.

"No baby. You were asleep."

"Can we go get them now?"

Gerard whimpered slightly as his stomach rolled.

"Feeling sick?..."

Frank sat himself up more, a concerned look in his eyes. Gerard nodded, minutely.

"Ok then sugar."

Frank helped Gerard upright, then slipped off the bed to find them clean clothes, but before Gerard could even pull on his boxers, he was rushing to the bathroom and bringing up what little he had in his belly.

"Alright baby...I've got you..."

Frank held Gerard up, and held his hair back, softly cooing to him as Gerard retched and dry heaved for a while after he was empty, tears streaming down his face. When Frank was sure there was nothing left, he flushed and scooped Gerard up.

"Let's get you dressed, then we're gonna go to the pharmacy."

Gerard nodded weakly. He felt exhausted and drained, and really just wanted to sleep now, but he knew that he needed the medication, so he allowed Frank to dress him, as he didn't really have the energy to do it himself.  
Once they were both dressed, Frank picked Gerard up and carried him out to the truck. Normally, Gerard would protest to being carried around like a baby, so it was a testament to how ill he was, that he just accepted it, and rested his head against Frank's shoulder.

Frank placed Gerard carefully in the passenger seat and fastened his seatbelt for him. He frowned as he saw how pale and tired the younger man was. He really hoped these pills and the food supplement helped him, and that the test results didn't turn up something more serious than a tummy bug.

Shutting Gerard's door, Frank walked around to the driver's side and swung himself up into the seat. He looked over at Gerard, and found him on the verge of sleep again. This worried him a lot.  
Frank closed his own door, then put on his own seatbelt before pulling out his cellphone and shooting a quick text to Lucas, though he knew he wouldn't get a reply.

_To Lucas,_   
_From dad._   
_I'm taking Gee into town for medicine. Back soon. Call if there's a problem._

He slipped his phone back in his pocket and started the truck. Glancing to his right, he saw that Gerard was already asleep. Frank drove slowly down the mountain, not wanting to disturb him.  
When they reached the town, Frank parked as close to the pharmacy as he could get, and turned off the engine. He undid his seatbelt, then turned and undid Gerard's, before gently shaking him awake.

"We're here baby, time to wake up."

Gerard's eyes fluttered open, and he stared blearily up at Frank for a moment.

"Where are we?"

He asked, quietly.

"The pharmacy baby..."

Frank smiled softly, as he gently stroked Gerard's baby-fine hair from his face.

"How you feeling?"

Gerard shrugged, noncommittally.

"Like there's nothing left."

Frank frowned. He'd never seen Gerard so listless or spent. It was like he was giving up, and that scared Frank in a way nothing else could. He leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to Gerard's pale temple, then climbed out of the truck, shut his door, and walked around to the passenger side.  
When he opened Gerard's door, the younger man smiled slightly, and waited for Frank to pick him up.  
Frank lifted Gerard down from the truck, and carefully set him on his feet.

"Do you think you can walk?..."

He asked, one arm wrapped firmly around Gerard's tiny waist as he shut and locked the car door with the other. Gerard nodded slightly, but still kept hold of Frank.

"You sure?"

Gerard smiled faintly.

"Yes, I think so."

They headed into the pharmacy, and were greeted by a bubbly girl with platinum blonde hair.

"Hello Mr. Iero, Mr. Way...Oh my, you don't look so good. Do you need to sit down?"

She fussed, grabbing a chair from against the wall and putting it next to Gerard.

"Thank you Jolene."

Frank said, guiding Gerard down onto the seat. Gerard was starting to look even more spaced out than before.

"Doc Brown gave us this prescription..."

He pulled the paper out of his pocket and handed it to her.

"He also mentioned something called Ensure Clear?"

"Of course..."

She nodded, though her concerned blue eyes remained on the young school teacher.

"I'll fill this, then get you what Ensure we have in stock."

Frank thanked her, before dropping to a crouch in front of Gerard, and placing both his hands on Gerard's paper-white cheeks, tilting the younger man's head up so their eyes could meet.

"Sweetheart?. You're gonna be ok."

Gerard just blinked slowly at him. He'd never felt so tired in his life. Just then, Jolene returned with a bottle of pills, and an armful of multicoloured drink bottles.

"Ok..."

She said, setting everything on a nearby shelf.

"These are the anti-sickness tablets..."

She handed the bottle to Frank.

"They're called Cyclizine, and you can take one tablet every 4-6 hours, but don't exceed 4 tablets in 24 hours..."

Frank nodded his understanding, then Jolene started to show him the different flavours that the supplement drinks came in.

"So, we have pomegranate, mixed fruit or peach in the clear...but we have a much larger selection in the milk based drinks, though if you're suffering from nausea, I'd recommend sticking to the clear drinks for now."

Frank nodded.

"Yes, Gerard's been sick for a week now, so I think we'll go with the clear ones. Can we have a half dozen of each flavour please?"

"Of course..."

Jolene nodded.

"I'll ring it all up for you, then get them bagged."

Frank nodded, then turned his attention back to Gerard, who was falling asleep on the chair. Frank stood up, scooped Gerard up in his arms, then sat down on the chair, cradling Gerard's limp body against his chest.

"You're gonna be ok baby...you're gonna be ok."

Though he really wasn't too sure of that any more, and it hurt his heart to think he might lose him. After a couple of minutes, Jolene came back with all their things bagged up.

"That comes to..."

She checked the note in her hand.

"$107.25."

Frank dug his wallet out of his coat pocket, and handed over $120.

"Keep the change."

He just wanted to get Gerard home and safely tucked up in bed.

"Wow...thank you..."

Jolene said, brightly.

"Let me carry these out to your car for you."

Frank thanked her as he slowly stood up, Gerard now asleep against his shoulder.  
5 minutes later, after Jolene had wished Frank good luck about a dozen times, he finally started back up the mountain toward home.

When they arrived, Frank got out of the truck and moved to the passenger side. He carefully lifted Gerard into his arms and carried him inside.  
Lucas was in the kitchen, sat at the table drinking coffee. He looked up with hard eyes.  
Frank shifted Gerard's meagre weight against his chest.

"Lucas...I know you hate me right now, and you have every right to, but while you're hating me, could you please go and fetch Gerard's medicines?...They're in the passenger side footwell in the truck..."

Lucas didn't reply, just stood up and headed outside.

"Thank you."

Frank murmured to the closed door.  
He sighed, then took Gerard to the bedroom, carefully laying him down on the bed, before stripping him down to his boxers, and tucking the blankets around him. Feeling pretty drained himself, Frank removed his own coat, boots, shirt and jeans, before sliding under the covers and wrapping Gerard up in his arms.  
Later...he'd deal with everything else...later.

*

Frank woke up to the sound of sobbing. Turning his head toward the noise, he found Gerard curled up on his side, with his back to him.

"Gee?..."

The smell of vomit invaded Frank's nose as he heard Gerard's breath hitch. Frank sat up and leaned over his husband, seeing the mess on the floor, and over the side of the bed.

"Oh baby..."

He cooed, carefully rolling Gerard toward him. The younger man's face was paper-white and slick with sweat and tears. His eyes looked hollow and bruised.

"That's it..."

Frank stated.

"I'm taking you back to Doc Brown."

Gerard weakly shook his head, his shaky hands grasping at Frank's bare arm.

"He...he said he'd call."

Frank frowned, hearing how small Gerard's voice was...a far cry from his usual strong, feisty self.

"Well he hasn't, so I'm gonna take you to him..."

Frank climbed off the bed, dragging his jeans and shirt back on, but leaving the shirt undone. He carefully picked Gerard up and moved him to the other side of the bed, onto the clean sheets, then kissed his clammy forehead. Gerard's eyes fluttered softly.  
Frank frowned, then walked quickly from the room. Lucas was sat at the kitchen table, cleaning his rifle. He looked up, but didn't speak.

"Lucas, can we shelve this for now?..."

He crossed the room to get a cloth, wetting it under the cold tap.

"Gerard's really sick...I could do with your help."

Lucas sighed.

"Of course. What do you need?"

His words were clipped, but his tone held concern.

"I'm taking him to Doc Brown. Can you help me get him dressed, and then clean up when we go?"

"Clean up?"

Frank bit his lip.

"Yes. He was sick on the bed."

"Oh...Ew!"

Frank chuckled humourlessly, then led the way back into the bedroom. Gerard was whimpering and clutching weakly at his stomach as his body trembled.

"Ok baby, I'm here..."

Frank crouched down beside the bed, so he was eye level with the younger man and reached out to push his damp hair out of his face, before running the cloth over his forehead.

"We're gonna get you dressed now..."

He turned to Lucas.

"Can you grab some pyjamas from that drawer?..."

He pointed to the top drawer of the dresser in the corner. Lucas nodded and went to fetch them. Frank carefully lifted Gerard into a sitting position, but had to hold him as he was too weak to sit up on his own, his head falling onto Frank's shoulder as he sat next to him.

"Stay awake love."

Lucas walked over, worry plain on his face.

"Here you go dad..."

All the animosity from before had seeped away the second he'd seen just how sick Gerard was.

"These ok?"

Frank looked up and saw Gerard's Batman pjs in his son's hands. He smiled slightly.

"Perfect. Can you help me get them on him?"

"Sure..."

Between them, they got Gerard's limp body into the clothes, then Frank indicated for Lucas to sit down on Gerard's other side.

"Can you hold him while I put my shoes on?..."

Lucas nodded, and Frank moved Gerard from his shoulder, to his son's. Standing from the bed, he crossed the room to fetch his boots, while buttoning his shirt on the way.

"Thank you."

Frank said softly as he returned to Gerard's side.  
Lucas knew that this wasn't just a straight- thanks. He knew that his father was thanking him for putting their differences aside for the sake of his stepfather, and for now, that's what he'd do. But later, once Gerard was well, they would be getting into it.

Frank picked up his keys, then gently took Gerard from Lucas' arms, scooping him up, and cradling him against his broad chest.

"Can you hold the doors?"

Lucas took Frank's keys from his hand and headed out of the room.

"Why don't I drive you?...I'll clean up when we get back."

Frank nodded, a grateful yet worried smile touching his lips.

"Thank you Lucas."

Once they were in the truck, Lucas behind the wheel and Frank in the back, with Gerard's thin, shivering form in his lap, Lucas started the engine and headed into town.  
He drove carefully but with speed, and soon was pulling up outside Doc Brown's surgery. Switching off and climbing out, he quickly went to assist his father, before locking the car, and trotting to overtake Frank, so that he could get the door for him.  
As they entered the small reception, Miss Howard looked up from an ageing typewriter, and wrinkled her nose in disgust.

"Well I _know_ that you don't have an appointment today..."

She snipped.

"And we don't have any available."

Frank gritted his teeth. He had neither the time, nor the patience to deal with that bitch right now. Lucas picked up on his father's anger, and stepped in to try to defuse the situation.

"Good day Miss Howard, how are you? It's been a while."

The acerbic witch turned her greying eyes toward the younger man, her scowl slipping a little.

"I'm well. Thank you for asking. So many young people forget how to be polite, I find."

Lucas nodded, ignoring the irony of her complaint.

"I find that too..."

He said in a hushed tone, glancing around as if going against his own age group would get him kicked out of the club, or something. Miss Howard smiled slightly...or as close as it was possible for her to get.

"Now..."

Lucas continued calmly, as he could practically feel Frank seethe behind him.

"I understand that you're very busy..."

He said, despite the fact that the small waiting room was empty apart from the four of them.

"...but we really need to see Dr. Brown. Gerard's very ill, and we're really worried..."

Miss Howard looked past Lucas' shoulder, the young man moving slightly to the side, and it struck her that the young school teacher looked even worse than he had yesterday. Almost dead even.  
She straightened up and met Lucas' eyes again. Sighing slightly, she stood from her desk and went to the doctor's door, knocked twice, then entered.

Lucas turned toward Frank.

"It'll be ok dad."

He reassured, softly. Though he himself wasn't entirely convinced of this. Frank gave a tight smile in return, then looked toward the door and waited.  
A few minutes later, Doc Brown came out, shortly followed by Miss Howard.

"Oh my..."

He breathed, as he saw Gerard.

"Bring him through."

He gestured for Frank to enter his examination room.

"I'll wait out here."

Lucas said. Frank nodded, then disappeared into the room.

"I know you said you would call...but he's not getting better. In fact, he's a lot worse. Please Doc...can you help him? Please?"

Frank didn't like to beg; it wasn’t in his nature, but for this, he'd get down on his Goddamn knees and kiss someone's feet...if he thought it would help.  
Doc Brown stood in front of Frank, who still held Gerard in his arms.

"Take a seat Frank..."

Frank breathed deeply, then sat down with Gerard on his lap. Gerard was asleep. The doctor sat down in the seat next to him and felt Gerard's pulse, then took his temperature.

"Frank..."

He seemed nervous, Frank thought with concern.

"The blood results came back."

"And?"

"Frank...Gerard needs to hear this too."

Frank looked down at the frail man in his arms, and nodded slightly...then gently stroked Gerard's hair.

"Gerard?...Sweetheart, you need to wake up."

Gerard's eyes fluttered sleepily, then opened. His usually bright, hazel/green eyes looked dull and faded. He looked up at Frank and a tiny, almost imperceptible smile tugged at his lips.

"F...Frankie."

"I'm here sweetheart. So's Doc Brown, and he's got your blood results..."

Gerard's lip quivered, fear flashing through his eyes. Frank gently kissed his forehead, holding him close.

"It's gonna be alright...I'm here..."

Frank looked up at the doctor, who had just retrieved Gerard's results from his desk.

"Go on Doc."

Dr. Brown sighed deeply, looking between the two expectant pairs of eyes.

"Ok...so it's not a stomach bug."

Gerard shivered against Frank, frightened tears slipping from his eyes.

"Then what is it Doc?"

Frank asked. A touch of desperation entering his voice.  
The doctor looked unsure how to continue, and this just scared Gerard more. After a moment, the older man cleared his throat and started again.

"I had them run a full blood work up, because I wasn't exactly sure what they should be looking for..."

He paused, frowning slightly.

"You remember that I said there was a problem with the urine test I carried out?..."

Both men silently nodded.

"Well, it turns out that there wasn't."

"What are you talking about?"

Frank asked, sharply. Dr. Brown looked Gerard in the eye.

"Gerard, when was the last time you had a blood test, before yesterday?"

Gerard looked confused, exhausted and confused.

"I...I don't think I ever have."

Dr. Brown nodded, knowingly.

"As I suspected. Alright, now, what I have to tell you, will probably not make a lot of sense to you."

Gerard looked up at Frank, his lip shaking. Frank pressed a hard kiss to his forehead, before turning his eyes back to the doctor, and giving him a small nod to continue.

"Ok...so there was a high level of a particular hormone that showed up in the urine test, and again in the blood test. This hormone is why I thought that the urine test was wrong..."

He paused again, biting his lip and looking down at the papers in his hand.

"The hormone is called hCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin...and you shouldn't have _any_."

Frank knew that Gerard was too scared right now to ask questions, and to tell the truth, so was he, but he gathered his courage around him, squeezed Gerard to him, and asked anyway.

"And what exactly is hCG?"

Dr. Brown looked really uncomfortable, but Frank didn't give a shit...they needed answers. After a moment or two of slight squirming, the doctor spoke again.

"It's...it's what is looked for in a...a pregnancy test."

Frank laughed out loud in the tense room. How could he not?

"Pregnancy test? You're kidding Doc...Gerard's not a girl. Trust me on this...I know."

Gerard blushed slightly, his eyes dropping to the floor. Dr. Brown shook his head.

"I'm not saying he is. What I'm saying, is that he has this hormone that he shouldn't have, and I think that is what is making him sick. I want to admit him to the Billings Clinic, under an Endocrinologist by the name of Christopher Sorli. He's an expert on hormones, and if anyone can get to the bottom of this, he can."

Frank felt Gerard go limp against him.

"Gerard?..."

He looked down and saw that the younger man was asleep again. He sighed, pulling him tighter into his chest, before turning to the doctor.

"You want him to go today?"

"Yes, I do..."

Dr. Brown stated, seriously.

"He's already expecting you, and I've arranged for an air ambulance to collect you both from Parson's field in an hour..."

He looked at his watch.

"Make that 50 minutes."

"Air ambulance? It's...it's that serious?"

Dr. Brown smiled, sympathetically.

"It may be. But until Dr Sorli has a look at him, and runs some more tests, I really can't say."

Frank felt tears on his face. Frank never cries.  
He looked down at the man in his arms. So fragile and weak. So different from the fierce tiger he'd been when they first met.  
He couldn't lose him...he just couldn't.

"Doc?..."

Frank's head shot up, wet eyes imploring. The doctor raised his eyebrows for Frank to continue.

"I can go with him, can't I?...I mean...he doesn't have to go on his own, right?"

Dr. Brown smiled.

"Yes, you can go with him...I made sure of it."

"Thank you Doc..."

Frank sighed, swallowing back more tears.

"I just can't stand the thought of losing him...you know?"

"Of course..."

They fell silent for a minute, before the doctor spoke again.

"Now, did I see your boy out there?"

Frank smiled, fondly.

"Yes, that was Lucas."

"He certainly has grown since I last saw him."

"He would..."

Frank chuckled.

"It's been what?...5 years?"

Doc Brown laughed, shaking his grey head.

"Huh...yes, I guess it has. You think he's ok with Gwen?"

Frank smirked slightly.

"That boy could charm the wings off an eagle...I think he can handle Miss Howard..."

Both men laughed for a moment, until a small pained gasp came from Gerard's lips. Frank leaned closer to his face, softly brushing his lips over Gerard's.

"Easy sweetheart."

He murmured.

"It's time to go, I think."

Dr. Brown said, gently. Frank nodded, carefully standing, while trying not to jostle Gerard awake.

"You coming with us Doc?"

Frank enquired, seeing the doctor fetch his coat from a hook on the wall.

"I'll come as far as Parson's field, and pass you over to the medics. That's if there's room in your truck?"

"Sure..."

Frank nodded as they reemerged into the waiting area, seeing Lucas jump up from where he was sat in the corner and head toward them.

"That would be good, thank you."

Lucas reached them and looked worriedly at Gerard, before meeting his dad's eyes.

"So what's happening?"

Frank took a breath, then told his son everything.

"Wow..."

Lucas exclaimed with large eyes. He ran his hand through his hair, looking so much like his father in that moment.

"Well...I best drive you to Parson's field then."

After Doc Brown had asked Miss Howard to cancel his next few appointments, and take any messages that might come in, he followed the Ieros out to Frank's truck.  
33 minutes later, they arrived at Parson's field...an unofficial landing strip on the edge of town. Helicopters and light aircraft often landed and departed from there, though the FAA was completely unaware of this, and would probably shut the place down if they knew.

The air ambulance was just coming in to land as they parked beside the runway.  
Dr. Brown went to meet the medics, explaining Gerard's condition, and that Frank was going with him, then handed over Gerard's medical file and waved Frank over.  
Frank climbed out of the truck, Lucas falling quickly into step at his side, and headed towards the helicopter. Once there, the medics gently took Gerard from his arms, though he was reluctant to let go, and got him strapped into the back of the vehicle, before beginning various tests...blood pressure, etc.

Frank turned to Lucas, and was surprised when the boy pulled him into a tight embrace.

"He'll be ok dad...you'll see."

Lucas said through his own tears. Frank hugged him back.

"Yes...he will..."

He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, then opened them.

"Lucas, I need you to go tell Michael what's happened. Then I want both of you to drive down to Billings together. Do you understand?"

He looked in his son's eyes.

"This is about your half brother, isn't it."

Frank nodded.

"He was expecting his answer today, and I'm not sure how far he'd go to get it."

Lucas nodded.

"Don't worry...I'll get Mikey, and we'll be there as soon as we can."

"Thank you."

Frank held his son for a moment longer, until a tap on his shoulder caused him to turn.

"Sir, we have to go now."

The dark skinned medic said, kindly. Frank nodded, then turned quickly back to Lucas.

"Call or text me when you're on the way."

Lucas nodded, then Frank climbed onboard, seeing that Gerard was hooked up to a heart monitor, oxygen mask, and an iv bag of saline that was flowing steadily into his right arm. He'd hate that.

As the chopper took off, Frank held Gerard's small, pale hand...and prayed. He couldn't lose Gerard...he just couldn't.


	3. Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there pals, more fic for your reading pleasure...I hope😉
> 
> ❤️🖤❤️

When the Medivac chopper landed on the roof helipad of the Billings Clinic, Frank could see medical staff waiting under the overhang at the doors to the elevator.  
The onboard medics waited until the helicopter's blades had come to a halt before opening the door. Frank kept a tight hold of Gerard's hand as the medics unloaded him and transferred his care to the hospital staff.  
After the transfer was complete, Frank followed them into the elevator.

"I'm Dr. Sorli..."

The tall, grey haired doctor introduced himself to Frank.

"Dr. Brown told me what's been happening, and I've read Gerard's notes, and the blood test results. Don't worry..."

He said, seeing the concern on Frank's face.

"He's in good hands."

Frank nodded, then followed the team out of the elevator and along a brightly lit corridor.  
They turned right into a private room, then the nurses set about moving Gerard from the helicopter's gurney, onto the narrow hospital bed, making sure to protect the access point in his arm throughout.

Once he was settled, one of the nurses wheeled the gurney back out, and presumably returned it to the helicopter.  
Frank stood next to Gerard's bed, still holding his hand as the nurses ran basic obs.  
Dr. Sorli looked through Gerard's most recent notes, before turning to the nurses and asking for his current obs. Apparently satisfied with the results, he turned to Frank.

"Ok. So, we're going to conduct various tests and scans now. You're welcome to go with him, or you can stay here if you prefer?"

"I'm going with him..."

Frank stated.

"I'm not letting him out of my sight."

The doctor nodded, then looked at Gerard.

"We'll figure this out..."

He turned back to Frank.

"Try to relax, ok?"

Frank nodded, then the doctor turned to address the two nurses who had remained in the room.  
Frank looked down at Gerard's pale face and gently stroked his hair from his forehead, before leaning down to press his lips on the clammy skin.

"It's gonna be ok sweetheart..."

He murmured quietly.

"I'll be right here with you."

Gerard was unconscious, and he didn't stir. Dr. Sorli stepped to the other side of Gerard's bed and looked at the various monitors for a moment before speaking to Frank.

"Gerard was in pain?"

Frank nodded.

"Was it general, or was it localised somewhere?"

"His stomach..."

Frank replied.

"Though that could just be because of all the times he was sick."

The doctor nodded, making a note.

"Ok. Well, we are going to do a scan of his abdomen now to determine if that is the reason for the pain or not. We'll also look for any abnormalities that could be causing the hormone irregularity."

Frank nodded, and a few minutes later a sonogram machine was wheeled into the room.  
Dr. Sorli washed his hands in the sink by the door, as one of the nurses prepared Gerard for the scan. She pulled down the covers that had been placed over him, then lifted up the front of his pyjama top, and edged down the top of his pants. She then turned on the scanning machine and typed in Gerard's name and date of birth, before squeezing some clear gel onto Gerard's stomach, and handing the scanning wand to Dr. Sorli, as he took a seat on the edge of the bed.

The doctor ran the wand through the gel, spreading it around a bit, before pressing it gently against Gerard's skin.

Frank looked at the screen, but all he saw was grey and black. He didn't know what he was looking at, so he turned his attention back to Gerard's face. Nothing had changed. He was still unconscious.

"Huh."

The doctor said, sounding surprised. Frank looked up.

"What is it? What do you see?"

He looked at the screen again, but still couldn't work it out.

"Hold on..."

Dr. Sorli murmured, moving the wand around some more and staring intently at the screen.

"Well, I wasn't expecting that!"

"What?"

Frank asked, concern dripping from his voice. Dr. Sorli turned his eyes toward Frank.

"I'm not entirely sure what's happening here, so I'm going to bring in a colleague to confirm before I jump the gun and tell you what I think I'm seeing."

He turned to the nurse and spoke to her.

"Abby, could you page Dr. Sager down here for me please?"

"Dr. Sager?...But she's..."

"I know Abby..."

He cut her off.

"Just page her please."

"What's going on?"

Frank asked as the nurse left the room. Dr. Sorli met his eyes.

"Let's just wait for Dr. Sager."

He returned to the screen and traced the wand across Gerard's nonexistent belly again, a confused look settling on his face. Frank tried to steady his breathing, but wasn't having much luck.

"What department is Dr. Sager from?"

Please don't let it be oncology...Frank silently prayed.  
Dr. Sorli didn't answer, and Frank became more and more concerned. The nurse returned with a short blonde woman with large round glasses, and a confused expression.

"Christopher..."

She addressed Dr. Sorli.

"Why on Earth did you page me?"

Dr. Sorli looked up at her.

"Ahh, Nadine, thank you for coming. I need your opinion on this patient's scan. Would you take a look please?"

Dr. Sager looked at Gerard then back at the other doctor.

"Christopher.. If this is some kind of joke..."

"It's not. I assure you."

Dr. Sorli stood up and passed the wand to the slightly miffed looking woman.  
She sighed, and took his place on the edge of Gerard's bed. Putting more gel onto the wand, she repeated the scan that Dr. Sorli had done, her confused face turning to one of shock.

"What the?...How?"

She looked at Dr. Sorli, who simply raised his eyebrows and nodded, then turned to speak to Frank.

"This is...I'm not sure how this is possible."

"What?..."

Frank demanded.

"Will someone please tell me what the _Hell_ is going on?"

Dr. Sager looked at her colleague.

"You didn't tell him?"

"I didn't know what to tell him."

Dr. Sager turned back to Frank.

"I'm not entirely sure how this has happened, but it appears that Gerard is, in fact...pregnant."

"Like Hell he is!..."

Frank barked.

"What kind of quacks _are_ you people? He's a man...he can't be pregnant!"

"Please calm down Mr. Iero..."

Dr. Sorli said carefully.

"I can assure you that we know what we're doing, we just have never seen something like this before..."

He rubbed the back of his neck.

"But we will figure it out. We just need to run some more tests."

Frank looked down at Gerard, feeling himself tear up.

"Please...just help him."

Over the next few hours, many, many tests were carried out, and a few minutes after Lucas and Mikey arrived, the results came back.

Frank was sat to Gerard's right, holding his hand, while Lucas and Mikey sat on his left.  
Frank had told them what he could, and they were all sat in a confused and stunned silence when Dr.s Sorli and Sager returned.

"Gentlemen."

Dr. Sorli nodded to them.

"This is Gerard's brother, Michael, and my son, Lucas."

Frank introduced. Both doctors introduced themselves, then Dr. Sager cleared her throat and began.

"So, we have run every possible test, and we've come to the conclusion that Gerard is actually an undiagnosed hermaphrodite."

She studied the three men's faces for any sign that they understood.

"But..."

Mikey spoke up.

"...aren't all hermaphrodites infertile?"

Dr. Sager shook her head.

"That's a popular misconception. It is, theoretically possible for one to become pregnant, or to father a child...but it is really unlikely, as most people with hermaphroditism have incomplete reproductive organs. Gerard's a very rare case, in that he has a complete set of ovaries, Fallopian tubes and a womb. He also has a fully functioning penis and testis. He really is quite unique."

Frank frowned.

"But is it safe for him to continue the pregnancy?...I mean, he's already so sick."

"I think the sickness is just what we'd expect- an extreme case of morning sickness. But we will monitor Gerard very closely over the next few days, while we get it under control, and we will make sure that he's fighting fit before we let you take him home."

Dr. Sager smiled softly.

"We will also want to see him frequently during the entire pregnancy, and when the due date approaches, he will need to be admitted in advance, as a c-section will obviously be necessary."

Frank looked down at Gerard, and wondered what he would make of all this when he wakes up.

"Doc?..."

He looked up at the woman before him. She nodded for him to continue.

"When he wakes up, can you help me explain this to him, cause I'm not sure he'll believe me."

Dr. Sager chuckled.

"Of course. It's a lot to take in, and Gerard will probably have a lot of questions. I'll be here, ok?"

Frank, Mikey and Lucas all nodded.

"Do any of you have any questions?"

Dr. Sorli asked. Frank and Lucas both shook their heads, but Mikey nodded.

"Yeah, I have one. How come Gerard never knew about this?"

Dr. Sorli nodded.

"Good question..."

He opened Gerard's notes and scanned a page for a moment, then looked up and smiled.

"It says here in Dr. Brown's notes that Gerard has never had a blood test in his life; and if he has never had a serious illness, or been admitted to hospital before?..."

Mikey shook his head.

"Then there's no way he could know."

Everyone sat in silence for a few minutes, just trying to absorb all that was said, then Dr. Sager's pager went off. She looked at it and frowned, then looked up.

"I've been paged for an emergency c-section in the ER. But I'm going to call my colleague to take it, as Gerard could wake up at any time."

She stood and left the room to make the call.

"When will he wake up?"

Frank asked, stroking his fingers over Gerard's cheek, that seemed to have a little more colour to it now.

"Soon..."

Dr. Sorli assured.

"He was extremely dehydrated and suffering from malnutrition when he arrived, but the drips we've had him on are doing their job, and in all likelihood, he'll regain consciousness within the next hour or so."

Frank nodded.

"Thank you. And I'm sorry about before...I just couldn't believe what you were telling me."

"Understandable. Don't worry about it."

The door opened and Dr. Sager returned.

"I've made sure that I won't be paged again until further notice. They wanted to know why, but I didn't tell them. I think that the fewer people who know about this, the better."

Dr. Sorli nodded.

"I agree. If news of a pregnant man were to get out, I'm afraid that you'd have the media breathing down your necks the entire time."

Frank nodded.

"You're right. No one needs to know."

"I'm gonna go get a coffee..."

Lucas said, standing from his seat.

"Anyone want one?"

"Please."

Frank and Mikey said in unison, before laughing quietly.

"Docs?"

Lucas raised his eyebrows at the two doctors.

"No thank you."

They both replied.

Lucas nodded, then left the room.  
Now, they would just have to wait for Gerard to wake up. Frank prayed that the doctors were right, and that he'd wake up really soon.

*

It was closer to two hours before Gerard began to regain consciousness, and Frank never left his side once during that time.  
As he started to come around, his eyelids fluttering, and his lips parting, a small moan escaping from between them, Frank stood and leaned in close to him.

"Gerard? Baby wake up. Come on...come back baby."

Gerard whimpered slightly and Dr. Sager checked his obs.

"Come on Gee. Time to wake up bro."

Mikey murmured.  
Lucas sat quietly watching. He'd spent the last two hours on his phone, looking up all the information he could regarding hermaphroditism, and he was still no closer to understanding it.  
Of course, he could've just asked Dr. Sager to explain it more, but she had told them that she was not an expert, and that there were probably more answers online than she could give anyway.

Gerard's eyes slowly fluttered open, and a small smile spread on his lips as Frank grinned down at him.

"Welcome back beautiful..."

He murmured, leaning down to press their lips together.

"How do you feel?"

Gerard smiled weakly.

"Tired, but better..."

His eyes flicked around the room, and widened when he realised that he was in a hospital.

"Frank?"

He whimpered, dragging scared eyes back to his husband's.

"Shh...it's ok baby..."

Frank cooed, gently stroking Gerard's hair from his face.

"You're ok..."

Gerard whined slightly, gripping Frank's hand, tight.

"Baby, do you remember us taking you back to see Doc Brown?..."

Gerard nodded, a little unsurely.

"And the doc telling us about the blood results?..."

Gerard frowned slightly and shook his head. Frank sighed.

"You were pretty out of it..."

He took a second to gather his thoughts, gently stroking Gerard's hand, and smiling at him reassuringly.

"The results said that you had a high level of a hormone that you shouldn't have any of, so Doc Brown sent us here. We're in Billings Medical Centre..."

He looked up at Dr. Sager, then back at Gerard.

"The hormone specialist here ran some tests, and did a scan of your belly, because you were in pain before. He found something unexpected, so he called in another doctor...Baby, this is Dr. Sager..."

He looked back at her and smiled.

"And she's going to explain what's going on...Ok?"

Gerard nodded slightly, and turned nervous eyes toward the small blonde woman.  
Dr. Sager smiled softly at him.

"Hello Gerard. I'm Dr. Sager, but you can call me Nadine..."

Gerard smiled minutely, and the doctor continued.

"As Frank said, your care has been passed over to me now..."

She pushed her glasses up her nose and cleared her throat.

"I repeated the scan that my colleague carried out, and was equally as surprised as he was by the results..."

She looked down at her hands for a moment, then looked back up.

"Gerard, you have never had a blood test before, am I right?..."

Gerard nodded slightly.

"And you have never been admitted to hospital before?..."

He shook his head and looked at Frank for reassurance. Frank smiled softly. Gerard looked back at the doctor.

"Well, we discovered something that you couldn't possibly know about, unless you'd had a blood test. We discovered that you are what is commonly known as Intersex. Do you know what that means?..."

Gerard shook his head. Frank could feel his hand trembling.

"You might know it better by its old name..."

She took a breath, knowing that she was about to change Gerard's very image of himself, and who he is.

"It used to be called hermaphroditism. Do you know what that means?"

Gerard's eyes grew wide and frightened, and he turned to look at Frank, his whole body now shaking.

"Shh baby...it's ok...don't cry..."

Gerard whimpered and tried to press himself closer to Frank. Frank knew Gerard was panicking now, and made a quick decision, climbing onto the bed and wrapping his arms carefully around him.

"Shh baby. You're ok...shh..."

Dr. Sager cleared her throat, and Frank held up a finger, asking for a minute. The doctor nodded, and waited, patiently. Frank cooed and comforted Gerard, reassuring him that nothing had changed between them, until the younger man calmed down and started to relax.

"Baby?..."

Gerard looked up through his tears.

"There's more."

Gerard whimpered, but nodded and turned his head toward the doctor. Dr. Sager smiled gently at him.

"Gerard, you could've gone your entire life without knowing about this, but your sickness made that impossible. Now, it turns out that you're not actually ill...Gerard, you are pregnant."

Gerard's eyes went impossibly wide, then rolled back in his head as he passed out.  
Frank cradled him against his chest and rocked him gently. To be honest it was exactly the reaction he'd expected.

*

A few minutes later, Gerard whined, and woke up. He was in Frank's arms, and Frank was gently rubbing his back and humming to him, softly.  
When Frank realised that Gerard was coming around, he smiled and pressed his lips to his husband's pale forehead.

"Hello baby. You ok?"

Gerard opened his eyes and looked up at Frank.

"No..."

He whimpered.

"I'm pregnant. How could I possibly be ok?"

Frank smiled sympathetically.

"Sweetheart, I know this is a lot to take in..."

"You think?"

Frank kissed the tip of Gerard's nose.

"But we'll get through this, together."

Gerard frowned and snuggled into Frank's chest.

"What am I supposed to do? I...I always wanted kids, I just didn't think I'd be the one carrying them."

Frank chuckled.

"Well...the doctor said that there's no medical reason why you can't carry a child full-term, it's just a case of do you want to?..."

He stroked Gerard's hair from his face.

"It's up to you sweetheart. Your body, your choice. Whatever you decide, I'll back you 100%."

Gerard sighed deeply.

"I don't know what I want to do...I never thought I'd have to make a decision like this. It's just so surreal."

He turned his head, and was surprised to see they were alone.

"Where did everyone go?"

"Well, Michael and Lucas went for coffee, and Dr. Sager got called to the neonatal ward. They'll all be back in a bit."

"Oh...Ok."

Gerard murmured.

"You don't get coffee, by the way..."

Frank grinned at the horrified look on Gerard's face.

"No caffeine allowed."

"So...if I decide to have this...this baby...I'll have to go 9 months without coffee?..."

Frank nodded, the grin never slipping from his face.

"Well darn...don't know if I can do that."

Frank laughed.

"I'm sure you could survive on decaf. And you wouldn't be alone...I'd switch over too."

Gerard's frown softened.

"You'd do that for me?..."

Frank nodded.

"Really?"

"Of course I would sweetheart. I'd do anything for you. You know that."

Gerard nodded, a smile spreading on his lips.

"Thank you Frank."

"What for?"

"For not running a mile when you found out I'm some like, freak of nature, or something."

His head dropped as he mumbled the words.

"You're not."

Frank assured, squeezing Gerard gently to him.

"You are beautiful, and smart and sweet...and this..."

He stroked his hand over Gerard's flat stomach.

"...this just means that you are even more special than I already thought you were..."

He grinned, lifting Gerard's chin and pressing their lips together.

"Think about it. What other gay couples can say they can have children that are a part of both of them? Dr. Sager says you're pretty unique...which I already knew..."

He winked at Gerard, who blushed and smiled slightly.

"But this just confirms how special you really are. And the fact you're carrying my child?...that makes you the most amazing person alive...bar none."

Gerard chuckled.

"You really know how to make a girl feel good about herself."

Frank laughed.

"So you're a girl now? Does that mean I can get you to wear lace panties?"

Gerard smirked.

"Maybe...I might consider it."

Frank's eyes widened, and he felt his cock twitch. He'd been joking, but apparently he'd uncovered a side of Gerard that he never knew existed.

"Don't tease sweetheart...I'm getting hard just imagining it, and I think the hospital may take exception to me fucking you right here in this bed."

Gerard grinned.

"They might...but now I _definitely_ have to get some..."

He blushed and looked down, his voice dropping.

"Replace the ones I left back in LA."

"What did you leave in LA?"

Mikey asked as he pushed back into the room, Lucas close behind, coffee cups in both his hands. Gerard's eyes widened, comically.

"Nothing..."

He said quickly, begging Frank with a look to not say.

"Nothing important."

Mikey shrugged, already bored with the subject.

"So...how you doing bro?"

Gerard relaxed, glad Mikey dropped the subject.

"Ok I guess. Just kind of confused right now."

"Understandable..."

Lucas handed a coffee to Frank, and chuckled at the disappointed look on Gerard's face when he didn't get one.

"I'd be shocked if you were instantly cool with all this."

Gerard nodded, looking begrudgingly at Frank's coffee as he took a sip, then handed it back to his son.

"I'm going decaf..."

Frank explained.

"That was potentially my last sip for the next 9 months."

He grinned, cuddling Gerard to him. Lucas smirked.

"How will you both cope?"

"Lots and lots of sex."

Frank grinned. Gerard blushed and swatted Frank's arm, scandalised.

"Frank!"

Frank laughed and kissed Gerard's cherry-red cheek.

"You know it's true."

He murmured in Gerard's ear as the younger man tried to hide in his own hair.

"Too much information dad. Much too much."

Lucas laughed, rolling his eyes and seeing Mikey pretend to gag next to him.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Dr. Sager asked as she entered the room with a bright smile on her lips. Gerard looked up.

"Oh, thank God...an adult."

The doctor laughed lightly.

"I won't ask."

"Probably best not."

She smiled.

"So, how are you feeling Gerard?"

Gerard sighed, his smile slipping slightly as the others brought themselves under control.

"Physically, better...but I'm just really confused and stunned right now."

"Of course..."

She smiled, softly.

"So let's talk about this. You can ask me whatever you like, and I'll try to answer as best as I can...Ok?"

Gerard nodded.

"Ok..."

Dr. Sager took a seat beside the bed.

"So first...if I decide to do this, how likely is it that I could carry this child full-term?"

"Well..."

The doctor smiled.

"We're in kind of uncharted territory right now, but judging from the scans, you have a complete set of internal female reproductive organs, so I can't see any reason why you'd have more problems that a woman would...That being said, there are no guarantees here, and I'll want to see you much more frequently throughout the pregnancy than I would usually..."

She took a deep breath.

"And I would want you checked in here at least a week before your due date."

"When is that?"

Frank asked. Dr. Sager looked at him and smiled.

"Well, from the size of the foetus, I'd put the due date at around the end of December."

"Wait, so I'm..."

Gerard calculated in his head.

"I'm 4 months gone?"

The doctor nodded.

"Yes, about that."

Gerard looked worriedly at her.

"If I decide to not go through with this, when would be the latest that I could, get a termination?"

Dr Sager smiled, understandingly.

"Legally in the United States, the answer to that question currently hinges on the concept of "viability". Viability is the ability of a foetus to live outside the womb. Most medical communities establish viability as 24 weeks of gestation, which is during the latter part of the second trimester. Although a pregnancy is considered full term between week 37 and week 42, babies born as early as week 24 have survived.  
According to the American Pregnancy Accociation, late-term abortions are not legal in most states in the U.S...except in cases in which the life of the mother is in danger. Late-term is defined as an abortion performed after viability of the foetus: If a pregnancy is farther than 24 weeks, abortion is no longer an option..."

She paused to consult her notes.

"So that gives you about 6 weeks in which to make your decision, though I would advise you to decide earlier, as your health could be put at risk if you leave it too long."

Gerard nodded, then turned to look at Frank.

"We've got some thinking to do."

Frank smiled and kissed Gerard softly.

"We'll figure it out sweetheart. Don't worry."

Gerard nodded and smiled, gratefully, then turned back to the doctor.

"And if I have the baby, how will I...you know...have it? Cause I'm pretty sure it's not coming out my butt."

Dr. Sager laughed and shook her head.

"No no. You would have a caesarian section under a general anaesthetic."

"Caesarian?..."

Gerard paled, noticeably, and swallowed deeply.

"You'd...you'd cut me open?"

Frank felt Gerard start to tremble, and began rubbing soothing circles against his skin.

"I'm sorry Gerard, but that's the only way this baby is coming out."

"I...I d-don't th-think I can d-do it."

Gerard stuttered as tears began to soak his face. Dr. Sager sighed.

"Gerard, I don't think you understand. At this point, whether you choose to carry full term or not, the only way this baby is leaving your body, is by Caesarian.. I'm sorry, but there's no other way."

Gerard broke then, collapsing into Frank's arms and crying like an infant. All Frank could do, was hold him.

"Can you give us a few minutes please?"

He asked the doctor, Mikey and Lucas. They all nodded and quietly left the room.

Frank rocked Gerard softly and cooed calming words in his ear. He couldn't imagine what the younger man was feeling right now, but whatever it was, it was breaking Frank's heart to see it.

After a while, Gerard's frightened sobs and cries died down, and he began to still. Frank kept rocking and cooing him until he felt Gerard's breathing evening out. He looked down into Gerard's pale face, to realise that he'd cried himself to sleep.  
Relieved that Gerard could rest now, Frank carefully adjusted the bed so they were both laying down more, then settled down and closed his eyes.  
They had a lot to discuss later, but for now, Frank allowed himself to sleep, and dream of what it would be like if Gerard decided to have this baby.  
Frank liked that dream.

*

When Gerard woke up, he found himself curled up in Frank's arms, nice and warm in his hospital bed. He opened his eyes just a crack, and peered around the dimly lit room.  
There was a small TV on the wall opposite the foot of the bed, that was showing some old comedy movie. Gerard thought it might be a Carry On film, but he didn't know which one.  
He could see Mikey and Lucas sat on chairs next to the bed, laughing quietly at whatever was happening on the screen, and every now and then, he felt Frank chuckle too.

Gerard stayed still and quiet, just enjoying observing his little family in this peaceful moment, before all Hell broke loose, and their lives were changed forever.

Frank had a small, half smile on his lips as he watched the TV, and he seemed to be enjoying the irony of some of the jokes, where Mikey and Lucas were more focused on the slap-stick element.

Gerard closed his eyes and let his mind wander to the decision he had ahead of him. It was scary to think that in a few months time, he could be having a baby; that there was currently a tiny human being, growing right there inside him.  
He had always wanted kids, and it wasn't that long ago that he had wished for almost exactly this to happen...but that didn't make the decision any easier.

Dr. Sager had said that they would have to cut him open either way. That absolutely terrified Gerard, but he understood why it was the only way.  
So the only choice he had to make, was- did he want this baby, or not?

Gerard knew, deep down, that there was really no decision to be made. He wanted this child with every fibre of his being, and he already felt protective of the little life within him.  
The thought of termination was repugnant to Gerard, so, he realised, in about 5 months time, he would be holding his and Frank's son or daughter in his arms.  
A smile spread across his lips at this thought. His decision was made.

"I know you're awake..."

Frank murmured from above him. Gerard opened his eyes again and looked up, meeting his husband's dark, but gentle gaze.

"You look happy."

Frank smiled, leaning down to kiss Gerard's pale pink lips. Gerard yawned slightly, and nodded.

"Yes, I am..."

He whispered, his smile tugging wider as he spoke.

"I'm going to have a baby."

Frank's eyes lit up.

"Really? You want to do this?"

"Yes, I do..."

Gerard confirmed.

"I just realised, this is meant to be, and as long as I have you by my side..."

Frank nodded, his grin spreading.

"I can cope with whatever life throws at me. Even if that _is_ some freaky male pregnancy stuff."

He laughed lightly. Mikey and Lucas turned to look at him with curious, but happy expressions on their faces.

"You ok bro?"

Mikey asked. Gerard nodded, snuggling against Frank's side.

"Yes Mikes, I'm just fine..."

He smiled.

"You are gonna be an uncle."

Mikey and Lucas both practically flew from their chairs to hug Gerard.

"Oh wow bro..."

Mikey cheered.

"I'm so happy for you. And I'll do whatever you need me to do, to help out. I'll even take some of your classes for you if you need me to."

Gerard chuckled.

"Well, I might have to take you up on that. We'll see."

"I'm gonna be a big brother..."

Lucas said, somewhat in awe.

"That's so cool. Congratulations dad, Gee."

Everyone hugged everyone else, and then they sat and talked about what they supposed most normal pregnant couples and their families talked about, until the door opened, and Dr. Sager returned.

"Well, looks like a party in here. Do we have something to celebrate?"

Frank grinned wide, nodding his head and squeezing Gerard gently to him.

"Yes doc. We, are going to have a baby."

Dr. Sager smiled happily and congratulated them on making the decision, then sat down next to the bed, so they could all start figuring out exactly what was going to happen next.

Gerard relaxed blissfully against his husband, and listened as everyone enthused about the baby. One of his hands moved unconsciously onto his stomach, and he smiled. Just 5 months, and he would hold his baby. All of a sudden, he couldn't wait.


	4. Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there guys, hope you’re well?
> 
> So here's another chapter, hope you enjoy.
> 
> ❤️🖤❤️

Gerard was kept in the hospital for the next eight days. Tests were run, and more fluids were given. He was feeling a lot better...not sick, at least...and was eventually allowed to go home.

Frank had refused to leave his side, choosing the uncomfortable chair beside his bed, in favour of joining Mikey and Lucas in the hotel across the street.  
He didn't sleep in the chair though, as each night, once the lights were turned out, he'd climb into Gerard's narrow hospital bed, pulling Gerard's thin body up to lay on his chest, then wrap his arms around the younger man and kiss the top of his head, before they'd both fall into a happy, peaceful sleep.  
But now they were going home.

Lucas had agreed to drive them all back, and Mikey had called shotgun, which left Frank and Gerard to take the back seat, which, truth be told, they were actually happy about.  
Once all their things were packed up, and Gerard had his discharge papers and a script for various pregnancy medications, they said goodbye to Dr. Sager, and headed out.

The drive home was long and tiring, but Gerard spent most of it curled up in Frank's lap asleep, so it didn't really bother him too much.  
As lunchtime approached, Mikey started to whine about wanting pizza, and about how his stomach thought his throat had been cut, so Lucas pulled into the parking lot of a little roadside diner.

"You guys hungry?"

He asked over his shoulder to his dad and Gerard. Gerard stirred against Frank's chest, blinking sleepily.

"Waffles?"

He asked in a small, tired voice as Frank squeezed him gently to him. Lucas grinned.

"I'm sure that can be arranged."

Frank was just happy that Gerard had an appetite now, and that he could keep food down. Opening the car door, Frank lifted Gerard into his arms and climbed out.

"I can walk Frank."

Gerard grumbled, but made no effort to get down.  
Frank just grinned and carried him inside, ignoring the odd looks they got from the staff and patrons of the diner.  
Finding a booth by the windows, they settled in and were immediately approached by an ageing waitress with way too much makeup on.

"Can I get you boys something to drink?"

She drawled around her gum.

"Yes please ma'am..."

Frank answered with a smile.

"Can we have two coffees, strong, black, and two orange juices please...and some menus?..."

The waitress nodded, making a note in her book.

"Thank you."

As the waitress left, Mikey leaned across the table and whispered to Gerard.

"She's wearing more lipstick that Aunt Agatha."

Gerard giggled, the high, light sound making the rest of the table smile.  
Frank kept one arm wrapped protectively around Gerard's waist as they sat and chatted.  
When the drinks and menus arrived...Frank and Gerard having the juices, much to Gerard's dismay...they all quickly chose what they wanted, Gerard choosing waffles, while the others all opted for pizza.

The food was good and there was lots of it, but Gerard only managed about half before he put his fork down and yawned wide.

"Tired baby?..."

Frank cooed, pulling him closer. Gerard nodded, leaning into Frank and rubbing his face against Frank's shirt. Frank chuckled and kissed his forehead.

"Close your eyes then. Go to sleep...I'm right here."

Gerard smiled up at Frank, sleepily, then closed his eyes and relaxed against him.  
Frank, Mikey and Lucas finished their meals, paid, then returned to the truck, Gerard curled up in Frank's strong arms.

They still had at least another hour on the road, but they weren't really in any hurry, as they were all aware that they could be headed back into trouble.  
They were all worried about what would happen if Wolf was there waiting for them, and despite how happy they were to be away from the hospital, they couldn't help but stew over what they were now driving toward. The closer they got, the tenser they all became.

Or maybe they had nothing to worry about...maybe he would've left town...maybe the elders would've told him to forget about it?  
No, Frank knew that wasn't gonna happen.

*

When they finally reached the ranch, Frank was glad to see that there were no ominous black trucks outside the house, and no immediate sign that Wolf had been there.

Lucas turned off the truck and sighed.

"Home sweet home."

He murmured before opening his door and climbing down. He went around to Frank's door as the older man opened it, and carefully took a sleeping Gerard out of his father's arms so he could climb down himself.

There was a thud and a curse as Mikey jumped down and nearly fell over when his foot caught a rock wrong. Frank looked at him with a raised eyebrow and an amused quirk to one side of his mouth, but he said nothing. Once he had Gerard back in his arms, and all the truck's doors were closed, Frank followed Lucas up to the house, with Mikey limping along slightly behind him.

It had been decided that until this business with Wolf and the Elders was resolved, Mikey would stay up on Iero's Mountain. He didn't like the idea, as he was as stubborn as his brother sometimes, but of course, Way men don't seem to be able to hold their ground long when it comes to Frank Iero, and his own brand of pigheaded stubbornness.

"Where am I going to sleep?"

"You're bunking with me."

Lucas said as he took off his hat then sat at the kitchen table to take off his boots.  
Mikey watched Frank with Gerard still sleeping in his arms, disappear into the back of the house...toward the bedrooms he presumed...and then he heard a door close. He turned back to Lucas.

"Is that appropriate?...I'm a school teacher, and you're..."

"I'm 16, nearly 17...and you’re not _my_ teacher. And if you were to even think of looking at me funny, I'd cut your balls off."

Lucas pulled a hunting knife with a wicked looking ten inch serrated blade from the boot he was unlacing, and placed it on the table...the blade pointed toward Mikey. Mikey would've taken it for a joke, if there was even a trace of humour in Lucas' cool blue eyes. Swallowing heavily, his face turning a slightly green colour, Mikey nodded weakly.

"Gotcha."

He murmured, his hand unconsciously moving to cover his threatened manhood. Lucas stood up after both boots were off and Mikey fell back a step...he’d never felt any fear around either of the Iero men, though they both outweighed him and were taller too, but suddenly he began to realise what his brother had told him about...about how they were perceived by the town's folk when he'd first arrived in Ruth...it was quite a sobering realisation.

"Follow me..."

Lucas headed for the back, and Mikey followed after him.

They passed Frank and Gerard's door and Mikey could hear a quiet, murmured conversation though the thick wood of the door prevented him from making out any words.

"I'm in here."

Lucas said from the next door along.

"Oh right, yes sorry."

Mikey took a last glance at his brother's door, then followed Lucas into his room.

*

"So do you want some dinner baby?"

Frank's voice rumbled in his chest as Gerard lay with his head there, and Frank ran his fingers through his long, pale hair. Gerard shook his head slightly.

"Maybe later..."

He lifted his head to look up at his husband, a soft smile on his lips.

"Could we..."

He blushed, and Frank grinned, fairly certain that he knew what was running through Gerard's pretty little head...he raised an eyebrow for Gerard to continue.

"Could we work up an appetite first?..."

Gerard pulled himself up further so he could press his lips to Frank's.

"It feels like forever."

He murmured into the kiss as Frank growled low in his throat and took control, pulling Gerard up until he was completely laying on top of him. They continued to kiss as Frank's hands ran over Gerard's back and down to his ass, squeezing a small gasp from the younger man, that he took full advantage of, by thrusting his tongue inside Gerard's mouth.

Frank slipped one hand in between them and unbuttoned Gerard's pants, before tugging them down his narrow hips. Gerard whimpered and pushed his hips down, seeking any friction he could find on his already hardening cock.

"So needy baby."

Frank growled as he attacked Gerard's pale throat with hot, biting kisses. Gerard moaned in agreement as Frank slid his hands into the back of his underwear, one finger teasing around the tight, puckered entrance.

"Lube."

Gerard breathed, really just wanting his husband inside him now, but knowing that it would hurt like Hell if not done right. Frank nodded against Gerard's neck, then withdrew his hand and brought it to his mouth. He stuck three fingers in and coated them with saliva before slipping his hand back down and almost without warning, pushing the first finger in.

Gerard tensed for a second, then relaxed. Frank wouldn't ever hurt him, he'd only ever made him feel good...it had just been a while.  
After a few minutes of Frank slowly moving one finger in and out of Gerard's tight heat, he pulled it out, then added the second. Gerard whined slightly, but focused on Frank's lips on his neck, and Frank's other hand that was playing with his hair.  
After a while, Frank moved onto three, and Gerard gasped and jolted violently.

"Shh shh baby. I got you..."

Frank stilled his fingers and peppered Gerard's throat and shoulder with kisses as he waited for his fragile husband to say it was ok for him to continue. It was nearly three minutes before Frank got the go ahead, and slowly pushed the three fingers in the rest of the way. Gerard nodded, his breath coming in deep, slow pants.  
Frank started to move his fingers, thrusting and stretching, with the occasional twist that had Gerard biting down on Frank's shoulder to hold in his loud moans.

Frank didn't want Gerard to hold it in, but with not just Lucas in the house, but also Michael, he could understand why Gerard wanted to be quiet. He allowed him to...for now.

It wasn't long before Gerard was rocking back onto Frank's fingers, his mouth hung open and desperate little noises escaping from his lips. Frank carefully pulled his fingers free and Gerard whined at the loss. Frank grinned, moving to sit up, taking Gerard with him.

"Take your clothes off baby."

Gerard nodded and climbed off of Frank's lap to tug his pants the rest of the way off and then fight with his sweater, that was getting caught somehow. He heard Frank chuckled, then felt hands take hold of the dark red fabric and pull it up and off of his head.

When he could see again, he saw that Frank was already naked...his dark, broad, heavily tattooed chest glistening with sweat. His strong muscular thighs and arms, and his long, thick, hard and heavy cock, the tip shining with precum...he made Gerard’s mouth water.  
Gerard's first thought was to lick Frank's chest, but that idea quickly left his head as Frank shoved him gently over onto his back and pushed his legs apart before leaning down and taking Gerard's cock into his mouth, all in one go.

Gerard's back arched and he let out a moan worthy of a porn star. Frank imagined that right about now, Lucas and Michael were making the decision to go out for something to eat.  
Frank bobbed his head up and down Gerard's length, his tongue pressing against the vein underneath as he gently rolled the younger man's balls in his hand.

Gerard had his fingers tangled in Frank's thick black hair as he writhed and moaned, his back arching dramatically.

"Please."

He begged. Just that one word, but Frank knew what Gerard wanted.

Pulling off of Gerard's cock with a pop, Frank sat back on his heels, then pulled Gerard's hips up and toward him, onto his lap. Frank spat in his hand and stroked his throbbing cock a couple of times, mixing his spit and precum to slick himself up. He leaned forward over his husband's slight body, the head of his cock pressing against Gerard's opening.

"You ready baby?..."

Gerard nodded, his pupils already blown from lust. Frank pushed slowly forward, holding Gerard's hips and pulling him in toward him. Gerard hissed in a breath as the head pushed through the tight ring of muscle.Frank stilled, his hands moving up to Gerard's sides to stroke comfortingly.  
Gerard's eyes were screwed shut and he was panting fast.

"It's alright baby. I won't move until you're ready..."

He leaned in and pressed kisses to Gerard's chest and ribs. After a couple of minutes, Gerard grunted quietly.

"You ready?...do you want me to push in?..."

Gerard swallowed then opened his eyes and smiled at Frank, nodding slightly. Frank placed a kiss over Gerard's heart, then sat back up slightly, took ahold of Gerard's hips, and slowly pushed in. Gerard's fingers gripped tight onto Frank's forearms as he felt himself being filled up. His chest heaved and his body shook until Frank finally bottomed out.

The urge to fuck Gerard into the mattress was really strong, but Frank's desire to never hurt or frighten the smaller man was infinitely stronger...so he waited for Gerard to adjust.  
Frank cooed sweet, encouraging words and pressed soft kisses to Gerard's damp skin as he smoothed his hands all over Gerard's pale body. After about five minutes, Gerard started to fuss. He shifted his hips and let out little huffs and whines. Frank got the message.

"Ready baby?"

Gerard nodded, and Frank slowly pulled out a little way, then gently pushed back in. He watched Gerard's face for signs of discomfort, but when he only saw pleasure, he smiled, and started a slow steady pace.

Gerard moaned and breathed heavily, his mouth hung open and eyes rolling back in his head.

"H-harder Frank."

He panted out. Frank did as he was told and soon he was thrusting deep and fast into his loudly keening husband. Sweat dripped from Frank's face and hair, and shone on the taught muscles of his body.  
In a split-second decision, Frank slid his arms under Gerard's back and lifted him up so their chests were pressed together, then sat back on his heels.

"Ride me baby..."

Gerard gasped as the change of position drove Frank deeper inside him. His eyes fluttered and he panted heavily for a moment or two before he opened his eyes to lock with Frank's and raised himself up on his knees, then dropped back down, hitting his prostate dead on and screaming out in ecstasy.

Frank moaned deeply and slid his hands down Gerard's sweat slick skin and onto his hips.

"That's it baby...so beautiful."

Gerard lifted up again and dropped back down, he started a constant movement, bouncing harder and faster in Frank's lap.

"Uh uh uh FFFrank."

They were both getting so close now...they knew each other's bodies; their tells.  
Frank slipped one hand between them and wrapped his fingers around Gerard's heavily leaking cock. Gerard cried out from the contact, and Frank started to stroke him loose and fast.

Less than a minute later, Gerard screamed long and loud as he came between then, great strings of cum covering both of their chests.  
His muscles clenched hard around Frank's cock, and then he was cumming too...filling Gerard till it was leaking back out again.

"GERRRRAAAARRD!!"

He roared.  
They both rode out their aftershocks until they were too sensitive to go on. Frank gently lifted Gerard up off of him, his softening cock slipping out as they both winced slightly.

Gerard was pretty much boneless right now, so Frank carefully laid him down and climbed off the bed. He padded naked to the bathroom and wet a cloth. He wiped himself off then rinsed the cloth and took it through to clean Gerard.

Gerard's eyes fluttered open and he smiled up at Frank.

"Been too long."

He murmured as Frank wiped the cum from his chest and stomach. Frank nodded in agreement.

"Let's never let it be that long again..."

Gerard giggled and Frank grinned, leaning down to kiss his beautiful husband.

"I love you so much Gee...I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost you."

Gerard shook his head, lifting his arms to snag Frank around the neck and pull him back onto the bed.

"Good thing you never have to find out then..."

He murmured, lightly kissing Frank's lips as they curled up together.

"Cause I love you too, and I'm not going anywhere."

**out on the front porch**

"Do you think it's safe to go back in yet?"

Mikey asked as he clutched a large cup of coffee between his hands, right under his nose.  
A giggle came from inside the house.  
Lucas took a large gulp of his coffee before he looked at the older man.

"I wouldn't put my money on it."

Mikey sighed, standing up and offering his hand.

"Take a walk with me?"

Lucas raised an eyebrow.

"Where to?"

"Somewhere I can’t hear your dad fucking my brother."

Mikey replied straight faced. Lucas laughed out loud, throwing his head back. 

"I think we’ll have to go quite a way if _that’s_ your plan..."

Mikey chuckled as Lucas accepted his hand and stood up.

"How about the barn...you haven’t seen Jet and her litter of monsters recently."

Mikey smiled.

"Ok, lets go."

Keeping their hands entwined, Lucas lead Mikey toward the barn where Jet and her babies now lived. Jet had proved herself quite the mouser since moving up onto the mountain, and Lucas was sure that her kittens would follow in her footsteps as soon as they were big enough.   
Lucas often caught his dad out there in the barn, cooing over the tiny new lives like they were his own young...though Frank would never admit that he had a big old soft spot for the kittens, that just wasn’t a very manly thing to do.

Lucas lead Mikey into the dimly lit space, the warm scent of hay and horses, the soft sounds of breathing and hoofed feet on the dry ground...it was one of Lucas' favourite places to just chill out...and for some reason that he couldn’t quite put his finger on yet, he wanted to share that magical place with Mikey.

"They’re in the last stall..."

He said quietly, leading Mikey forward.

"Come on, I’m sure Jet won’t mind a visit."

Mikey smiled...he wasn’t certain, but he thought he could be catching feelings for this boy who seemed so much older than his years. He knew that wasn’t a good idea, but Mikey never _had_ been the most sensible person when it came to matters of the heart.

*

A week later, just two weeks into the new school semester, and Gerard was going stir crazy. Mikey had returned to work and Lucas was either working the horses or off doing his advanced studies in a little town called Vida for seven hours every other day, and he was stuck at home with Frank watching his every move.

"I need to go back to work Frank...the kids need me."

Frank huffed, shaking his head as he stood up from the couch to go fix them both a drink.

"I don’t like it. You’re still recovering..."

"I’m pregnant Frank, not sick..."

Gerard interrupted crisply, standing to join Frank at the coffee maker.

"I’m eating again, I’m not throwing up and I feel fine..."

Frank turned to face him, one eyebrow raised. Gerard drew himself up to his full height, but refused to tiptoe just to look his husband in the eye. He placed one hand on his hip.

"Women have been working while they were pregnant since the dawn of time, and I challenge you to claim that I can’t do the same."

Frank thought for a moment, but actually couldn’t find an argument that would win against that. He sighed heavily, reaching out and catching Gerard by the hips, pulling him in toward him.

"Honey, you’re gonna be the death of me, you know that?..."

Gerard grinned wide, sensing that he’d gotten his point across. Frank chuckled softly, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to Gerard’s pale forehead.

"Ok..."

He said as he leaned back to look in the smaller man's sparkling eyes.

"But if you feel ill, you’re coming home..."

Gerard nodded and was about to speak when Frank continued.

" _And_ …"

Gerard closed his mouth again.

"I will be driving both you and Mikey to and from the school every day...no exceptions."

The look in his eyes broached no argument, so Gerard nodded. He could handle those conditions...he would have to.

"You’re still worried about Wolf?"

Frank frowned and nodded.

"Yes. He hasn’t been seen around town, but I’m fairly certain he’s still here."

"Do you think he’s dangerous?"

"I _know_ he is."

Gerard leaned into Frank’s broad chest, breathing in deeply and relaxing in his arms as Frank wrapped them around him.

"I’ll be careful Frank..."

He sighed, glancing down at his still flat stomach.

"After all, its not _just_ me I have to take care of now, now is it."

Frank chuckled, his chest rumbling against Gerard’s cheek.

"No baby, it’s not."

*

The next day, Gerard returned to work. Of course, everyone within twenty miles of the town had heard about how sick Gerard had been last time he was seen, and that he’d spent several days in the hospital over in Billings...but no one knew exactly why. There were rumours flying about that ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous, but _no one_ could guess the truth.

When Frank took the brothers into work, he insisted upon walking Gerard to his classroom and staying until other people started to arrive. It reminded Gerard of before; of when Frank and Lucas were playing guard dog after Bobby's first attack on him...the comparison made him shiver. This wasn’t the same exactly, but Frank was still on the look out for someone that could possibly hurt Gerard, and that fact alone made his blood run cold. 

"Gerard?"

Gerard jumped slightly, caught off guard by the voice that _wasn’t_ one of the only three he’d heard in the last week. He turned toward the door...as did Frank.

"Oh, hi Sharon. You gave me a fright."

Sharon Wycliffe smiled, entering the room and nodding politely to Frank as she passed. He nodded back, tipping his hat.

"Miss Wycliffe."

"Mr. Iero..."

She continued forward until she reached Gerard’s desk, that he had been reorganising for the past few minutes.

"It’s good to see you Gerard. We were all so concerned when you were taken ill."

Gerard knew that "concerned" translated to "nosey"...but he didn’t mind, it was a part of living in a small town that he’d had to get used to; everyone knowing everyone else’s business. He smiled softly.

"Well, I’m better now, and looking forward to getting back to work. I’ve missed the kids..."

He chuckled.

"...even George."

Sharon laughed lightly and Frank surmised that this George kid must be a bit of a handful for both of them to share the joke.

"Ah, yes... _George_..."

She shook her head fondly.

"You’ve definitely been missed around here, _that’s_ for certain."

Gerard smiled, looking down as he straightened a pile of papers.

"I...I’m going to have to speak to you and the other teachers soon. I’m going to need some time off at the beginning of the new year."

Sharon's eyes widened...this was not good news.

"Can I ask why?...I mean, you know how hard it is to get cover here."

Gerard looked up, glancing over to Frank and receiving an encouraging nod and wink. He smiled back.

"Well...I think it would be easier to tell you all together. That way I can answer any questions anyone has, and I’ll only need to do it once."

Sharon frowned slightly.

"Well, if that’s what you want. I’ll make sure everyone's available at lunchtime...if that’s ok with you?"

Gerard nodded, he dreaded the conversation, but there was no point in putting it off.

"That’s fine..."

Just then three girls walked in, chatting away until they saw who was in the room. They fell silent, looking wide eyed between the two teachers and Frank, who nodded to them slightly but said nothing. Gerard smiled at Sharon.

"Lunchtime it is then."

Sharon smiled back before turning to leave.

"See you later. Mr. Iero. Girls."

Then she was gone, heading to her own room to set up for the day...or to locate the other teachers to tell them the latest gossip. Gerard sighed...it was going to be a long day.

"Good morning girls. You Ok?"

The girls hadn’t moved from their spot just inside the room, but now they did, crossing to Gerard’s desk with wide smiles on their faces.

"Mr. Ieroway!...you’re back!"

Laney Tully, a shortish girl with mousy brown hair and lipstick that was always too bright for her complexion stated, somewhat redundantly.

"How are you? We heard you were in hospital."

Laney's twin sister Jude added. Gerard smiled fondly, he’d grown to really like the sisters, despite their rather annoying and matching machine gun laughs.

"I’m fine, thank you for asking. Tip top health..."

He heard Frank clear his throat subtly, but ignored it.

"And how are you? How was break and how’s the last week been without me here?"

"Oh, break was great..."

The third girl, Marissa Urban enthused.

"Me and my dad went to Florida and I met this boy called Jack and we..."

She cut herself off as she realised that she was just about to tell her teacher that she’d lost her virginity to her summer break fling. Gerard’s eyes widened...he’d understood what she meant.

"Oh, well..."

He laughed lightly but uncomfortably; the girl was only fifteen and he did _not_ want to know that she’d gotten intimate with a boy. He turned to the sisters.

"And how was _your_ break?"

"Boring..."

They said in unison...something else that they did that got on most people’s nerves.

"We helped mom in the store."

"Jude explained with a roll of her eyes. Gerard chuckled.

"Ah well, not _everyone_ can have an exciting break I guess."

Just then other kids started to wander in and Frank stood up straight from the wall he’d been leaning against. He nodded to the kids and walked over to Gerard’s side, leaning down to talk quietly to him as the three girls all headed to their desks and the other kids all watched in silent awe. Frank was sort of like the town's own celebrity now, after he’d taken Bobby down with what had by this point been exaggerated to a thousand yard shot, so he was getting used to the kids staring like he was Tom Cruise, only taller.

"Do you want me here at lunchtime? I could come help you explain things."

Gerard shook his head, smiling up at his husband.

"No, I think I’ll be ok."

"Ok. Well I’ll be here to pick you up at three... _don’t_ go anywhere without me, you hear?"

Gerard sighed, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

"Yes daddy."

He said sarcastically. Frank swallowed cause those two words had a somewhat unexpected and unwanted effect on him. Maybe he would have to explore that with Gerard later. He smiled.

"Ok. I’ll see you later baby."

He leaned in and pressed a kiss to Gerard’s lips, a chorus of "Oohs" and whistles sounding through the room around them. He smiled into the kiss, chuckling slightly before pulling away to see Gerard’s lids half closed and his cheeks tinted pink.

"Later."

Gerard said faintly, his eyes holding Frank’s with such love and trust. Frank smiled and winked, then turned and left the room.

"You two are so cute together."

Haley Jonson said in a sickly sweet tone.

"Yeah, I wish _I_ could find someone like him..."

Jude said with a pout.

"Is Lucas single Mr. Ieroway?"

Gerard laughed and shook his head.

"No, I’m pretty sure he’s seeing someone right now. Sorry."

The next few minutes were spent catching up; Gerard learning what everyone had gotten up to on their breaks, and what had been happening during the last week...then they settled in to work.

*

The morning seemed to practically fly by, with every person who saw him asking about Gerard’s health. Before he knew it, it was lunch.

The kids all headed for the cafeteria, or out into the crisp fall air...while Gerard was suddenly set upon by not only the other teachers, but nearly a dozen other members of the community...word had apparently gotten out of his return.

The men and women all had bright, eager smiles for Gerard as they welcomed him back and enquired about his health, then settled down, most of them sitting on the kids' desks.

"So..."

Sharon began, deciding to take the lead.

"It’s great to have you back. I’m sure you’ve heard some of the wild rumours that’ve been going round?"

Gerard nodded, he’d been told _some_ of them by Mikey...who had taken a seat to his right for moral support.

"I have, and I can tell you without a shadow of a doubt that I was _not_ abducted by aliens, nor did I contract Ebola..."

Laughter sounded through the room and Gerard smiled.

"I was sent to Billings for tests because I was losing weight, sick all the time and getting very weak. Dr. Brown had run some tests and apparently I had some hormone that I really shouldn’t have had. The doctors there ran various tests and found something none of us were expecting."

He heard Mikey chuckle under his breath at the choice of words, but ignored him. Everyone else was on the edge of their seats.

"What was it?"

Cicely Karr asked, barely able to contain herself. Gerard looked at Mikey for reassurance and Mikey reached over to hold Gerard’s hand, squeezing it gently and smiling at his older brother. Gerard took a deep breath, then turned back to the classroom full of people.

"They found..."

He took another breath.

"They found a...a baby."

"What?!"

A disbelieving chorus went through the room. He could tell this wasn’t going to be easy.

"I’m pregnant. About four months along now."

"Bullshit!..."

Ralph Hearst barked, and several others apparently agreed with him.

"If you’re pregnant, then I’m John Travolta."

"Nice to meet you John."

Mikey said with a twinkle in his eye.

"And _you_ can shut up."

Mr. Hearst snapped. That was it. No one talked to Mikey like that. Gerard was on his feet in a second, face red and fists clenched.

"Don’t you dare..."

He ground out.

"You can call me a liar if you want, but _no one_ talks to my brother like that...do you understand me Mr. Hearst?"

The older man looked set to fly at Gerard, but a hand on his arm stilled him.

"Let the boy explain..."

Francie Beecham said gently, her boney fingers digging into Mr. Hearst's arm until he relaxed and showed no signs of trying to get up again.

"I’d like to hear this myself..."

She looked at Gerard and smiled kindly.

"Carry on dear, you won’t be interrupted again."

Gerard was immensely grateful to the old woman, and decided he would bake her some cupcakes when he got home as a thank you. He smiled thankfully as he returned to his seat, fists unclenching as Mikey reached out and took his hand again.

"Ok..."

He began, a little shakily.

"I knew no one would believe this just because I say it’s true..."

He reached into his bag that was sat on the floor by his feet, and pulled out a Manila envelope.

"...so here..."

He held out the envelope.

"This is my medical records from the hospital, and the sonogram picture they took."

After a moment, Sharon stood from her seat and collected the envelope. She opened it and pulled out two sheets of A4 paper filled with typed text and headed with the Billings Medical Centre logo...and a three inch square print that was very obviously the aforementioned sonogram. After looking at the picture for a moment, she handed it over to Miss Beecham and focused on the medical records. After reading for a couple of minutes, she turned wide eyes toward Gerard.

"This says you’re..."

Gerard nodded when Sharon didn’t finish the sentence.

"Yes. I’d never been in hospital or had a blood test before, so I didn’t know."

"Know what?"

Mrs Karr prompted. Gerard sighed, addressing the room as Mikey squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"I didn’t know that I’m intersex."

"What’s that?"

A man who’s name escaped Gerard in that moment, said in confusion. Gerard offered a sympathetic, if weak smile.

"It used to be called hermaphroditism..."

A murmur went round the room and Gerard knew that they understood.

"According to the doctors, mine is a very rare case. Normally intersex people are sterile, but somehow..."

He waved his free hand in the air as he searched for the right words to use.

"...somehow I’m not. So..."

He took a breath and let it out slowly.

"I’m going to be having a baby during the Christmas break. Any questions?"

"So that’s why you’re going to need time off?"

Sharon asked, wide eyed.

"Maternity leave?..."

She frowned slightly, tilting her head.

"Or would it be _paternity_ leave?"

Gerard giggled.

"Yes, that’s why...and I don’t know which it would class as, but I’m thinking maternity."

"Well..."

Miss Beecham said, clapping her hands together before hoisting herself up off of one of the classroom chairs and heading over toward Gerard.

"May I be the first to say; congratulations..."

She grinned as she handed the sonogram over and clasped Gerard’s pale hand between both of her's.

"This is absolutely the most interesting thing to happen in this town since Cicely got her foot stuck in a skunk den, and got sprayed five times before she managed to get free..."

Mrs Karr huffed in annoyance behind her, arms crossed over her chest as everyone else laughed.

"It was nearly a week before anyone would be in a room with her..."

Gerard giggled and Miss Beecham grinned, turning to look at her friend.

"How many tomato showers did you take Cicely dear?"

Mrs Karr looked positively apoplectic, but huffed noisily, then answered.

"Twelve."

Miss Beecham grinned, turning back to Gerard with a mischievous look in her eye.

"You are going to be the talk of the town my dear...I wish you luck."

Gerard smiled softly.

"Thank you. I was so nervous about telling everyone. Thank you for making this so much better."

"My pleasure. Now..."

She pulled up a chair and sat down next to Gerard on the opposite side from Mikey and took his hand again.

"Have you thought of any names yet? I understand that Francie is coming back into fashion."

She winked and Gerard giggled, this really would’ve gone so much worse if Miss Beecham hadn’t been there.


	5. Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there guys, hope you’re all well?
> 
> I was going to post this last night, but I was sick...I’m feeling a little better now, so here’s the chapter you’ve been waiting for...IT'S BABY TIME! 🍼
> 
> Enjoy😊
> 
> ❤️🖤❤️

With Gerard and Mikey at work, Frank took the opportunity to talk to Lucas about his mother. It was not a conversation he was looking forward to, but he knew it had to happen...sooner rather than later.

Once Frank had finished feeding the horses in the stables, taking a few minutes to check on Jet and her kittens; gently stroking each as he cooed to them while filling Jet's milk dish, he stood up and set about saddling his favourite horse; a gorgeous black Arabian stallion that he’d rescued from a rancher who had been mistreating the animal...then climbed on and headed out toward the east side of the property. The stallion, that was called Nera, rode strong and true toward their destination...a far cry from when Frank first brought him home. The poor creature had been in a horrible state, having been whipped and beaten, starved and taught to mistrust humans...it had taken a long time and a lot of gentle care and coaxing before Frank could even hand feed the animal, let alone saddle and ride him. 

Frank marvelled at how far the horse had come since he’d first found him. He’d gone to pick up a mare that a rancher in the next county over wanted taming, and had spotted this skinny, weak, frightened animal huddled against the outer wall of the rancher's stables, tied with a rope that was way too tight, to a metal post that was way too short. Frank had asked the rancher about the horse and was told to mind his own business. Frank had punched the man square in the nose, then pulled out his wallet and started counting out bills...telling the man that if he ever lay a finger on one of his horses again, then he’d get a lot more than a bloody nose; he’d get PETA knocking on his door too. He’d thrown ten thousand dollars at the speechless man, then untied the horse, loaded him into his trailer and driven away.   
Two months later, Frank had heard that the rancher had been shut down and arrested on animal cruelty charges...Frank was damn glad he’d gotten Nera out of there when he did.

Riding up over the east ridge, he spotted Lucas' horse, a light footed bay called Cherry, stood grazing under a tree...and Lucas crouched down in the grass a few feet away. Frank slowed Nera down to a trot as he approached, calling out so to not surprise his son.

"Lucas!"

Lucas looked up, tipping his hat to shield his eyes from the morning sun. He nodded to Frank as he stood up, brushing dirt from the knee of his jeans.

"I found some tracks."

Frank frowned, pulling Nera to a stop and sliding down out of the saddle.

"Wolf?"

He moved to Lucas' side and crouched down where he’d been. Lucas nodded.

"I think so. Are they fresh?"

Frank examined the tracks; one full boot print and a toe print. He shook his head.

"About a week, I’d say..."

He stood up, brushing the same dirt from his own jeans before turning to face his son.

"Lucas...can we talk?"

Lucas sighed heavily, then nodded.

"I was just headed over to the top corner, to make sure the mountain lion didn’t cross the river again. Ride with me and we'll talk."

Frank nodded.

"Sure..."

He walked back to Nera and climbed on.

"I was gonna go check that myself actually..."

He smiled at Lucas as the boy mounted his own horse, but only got a blank look in return. He sighed.

"I’m sorry Lucas. I know it was wrong of me to keep your mother's suicide from you, but when you were little..."

He frowned as they walked their horses side by side, Lucas staring straight ahead.

"You were too young to understand back then."

"I haven’t been little for a long time dad. You should've told me."

Frank sighed heavily, gearing up to tell Lucas everything.

"I know. Your mother was a good woman, and she loved you very much...I just think that she couldn’t cope. I know that was probably my fault, at least to a point, but she didn’t ask for help. She didn’t talk to the other army wives and she’d almost completely cut ties with the reservation by the time you were born. She didn’t have any close friends and I guess, with me away..."

He trailed off, sadness and guilt choking him. Lucas reached out his hand, grabbing Nera's reins and pulling them to a stop. Frank looked at him and saw the mirror of his sadness in his son's pale eyes.

"It wasn’t your fault dad. You were fighting for our country, not off chasing skirt while mom stayed home with me. It’s not your fault she died."

Frank felt a tear slide down his cheek, and let it.

"But if I’d been home..."

Lucas shook his head.

"Dad, you always told me not to worry about what ifs...perhaps you should listen to your own advice."

He smiled slightly. Frank smiled back, letting out a sigh and releasing some of the tension he’d held since they’d started their conversation.

"When did _you_ get so wise?..."

He chuckled as Lucas' smile widened.

"Ok, so maybe a shouldn’t blame myself for her death...but I could’ve told you sooner, and for that...for that I’m very very sorry."

Lucas sighed heavily, rolling his eyes up to the clear blue sky. After a moment, he looked back at Frank with a full smile and the love that Frank thought he’d lost, shining bright in his eyes once again.

"Apology accepted. Now come on, I wanna check for that lion then go in for a coffee...cool?"

Frank grinned.

"The coolest..."

They started the horses walking again until Frank suddenly said:

"Race ya!"

Seconds later the two men were riding their horses at full tilt across the fields toward the top corner, laughter and shouts of encouragement floating on the air...Lucas' previous grievances left in the past.

** _Time Stamp~ November 29_ **

There hadn't been any sightings of Wolf around town, even though they’d gone well past the man's deadline, but both Frank and Lucas were constantly on high alert in case he showed. There’d been the odd foot print, but nothing more.

The whole Iero-Way clan drove to the Billings Medical Centre to see Dr. Sager every other Saturday for scans and medication checks, but other than that...and the crib that Frank was making from scratch in his workshop out near the barn...everything was getting back to normal, whatever _that_ meant.

Without a definite due date, they were having to go by the baby's size on the scans...Dr. Sager had told them the end of December, and they had already planned that Gerard would be admitted on the 18th, two days after school ended.

Gerard was sat in his classroom on the cold Thursday afternoon. His class were currently quiet with their heads down as they worked on the pop quiz he'd set about the American Revolution.

"Sir?"

Gerard looked up from the papers he was marking.

"Yes Lya?"

"Are you alright sir?"

Gerard frowned slightly at the girl in confusion.

"I'm fine...why?..."

The small blonde girl pointed to the floor beneath Gerard's chair. He looked down and suddenly felt like revising his answer. He looked back up, his face draining of colour.

"Could you..."

He swallowed then tried again.

"Could you go next door and fetch my brother please?"

Lya nodded and left quickly as Gerard fished his cellphone out of his pocket and dialled Frank's number with trembling fingers. He could hear mumblings of concern from around the room but didn't look up. After just two rings, Frank answered.

"What's wrong?"

Frank knew that Gerard wouldn't call during school time unless there was a problem.

"Frank..."

Gerard's voice came out shaky. Mikey entered the room and went straight to his side.

"We're on our way baby..."

Frank said gently, Gerard could hear him grabbing keys and whistling to get Lucas' attention.

"Is Michael with you?"

Mikey took the phone from Gerard's hand when he seemed unable to form words.

"Frank? Its Mikey. I'm with Gee in his classroom...he's ok, but I think we need to get him to Billings ASAP."

Frank sucked in a rough breath.

"We're coming to you. Stay where you are..."

Frank and Lucas climbed quickly into Frank's truck. Frank passed the cell to Lucas and started down the mountain.

"Mikey, its Lucas. What's going on?"

Mikey was sat on a chair next to Gerard, holding his hand and trying to stay calm for him.

"I think his water broke."

He said quietly. He heard Lucas curse before answering.

"But it's like a month early...at least."

"I know."

"I'm gonna hang up and call Billings, then I'll call you back if we're not with you yet."

He hung up without another word. Mikey set the cell on Gerard's desk then turned to him.

"They're on their way."

Gerard looked up at his brother. He had tears running down his pale cheeks and his bottom lip trapped between his teeth to stop it from trembling.

"Y-you hung up."

He said shakily. Mikey squeezed his hand reassuringly.

"Lucas is calling Dr. Sager, then he'll call back if they're not here by then..."

He chuckled slightly.

"You know how Frank drives when he needs to get to you though, they could be here any minute now."

Gerard tried to smile, but he was too scared for it to look anything but forced.

After a few quiet minutes, one of the other teachers came in to find out what was going on, since Mikey had left his class unattended, but when she realised what was happening, she took Gerard's class out with her and told the brothers that both of their classes would be covered for as long as they needed.

When Gerard had first returned to school and explained to everyone what was happening, many hadn't believed...but as Gerard's stomach started to swell, growing rapidly now that he was eating again, they really didn't have much choice but to accept it. There were many questions and he'd received a lot of funny looks, from students and adults alike, but things had quickly settled down, and now almost everyone was on board and getting excited to meet the new edition to the little community.

Frank's truck pulled up to the doors of the school, just as Lucas hung up his phone call with the doctor. Frank was out of the truck before it had even rocked to a standstill. He raced into the school with Lucas on his heels, and straight into Gerard's classroom.

"Gerard..."

He said, his voice thick with worry as he crossed the room and dropped to a crouch at his husband's side, taking one of Gerard's hands in his...the other hand coming up to cup the younger man's cheek.

"It's going to be alright baby."

"The air ambulance is on it's way..."

Lucas said as Mikey moved to his side and took his hand.

"They're gonna land on the sports field."

He squeezed Mikey's hand. Frank nodded, but didn't take his eyes off of Gerard's face.

"Does it hurt?..."

He said, voice a low rumble in his chest. Gerard shook his head, though he couldn't stop his tears from falling.

"You sure?"

Frank cocked an eyebrow. Gerard gave him a weak, watery smile.

"It doesn't hurt...I'm just freaking out a bit."

"Understandable..."

Frank smiled, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to his husband's lips before turning to look at his son and brother-in-law. He opened his mouth to say something, then stopped and raised an eyebrow again when he clocked their linked fingers...he'd deal with _that_ later.

"Could you two go keep a look out for the fly boys please...you know, if you can keep your hands off each other for two minutes that is?..."

Mikey went an impressive shade of red and looked like he wanted to crawl under a table and hide, while Lucas just smirked and dragged the older man out of the room by his hand, with a wink at his dad on the way. Frank looked back at Gerard.

"When did _that_ happen?"

Gerard giggled despite his tears.

"Not long ago I think. Not really surprising though, concidering they're sharing a room..."

He squeezed Frank's hand.

"Your son is very much in control, so don't worry. Ok?"

Frank frowned slightly, but then nodded.

"He's old enough to make his own choice. But if Michael hurts him..."

"He won't...but if he does, _I'll_ kick his ass."

Frank chuckled.

"There's my little tiger."

Just then Lucas appeared in the doorway.

"They're here."

Frank nodded then stood up, carefully scooping Gerard up into his arms.

"I can walk."

"I know."

Frank carried Gerard out of the classroom, following his son through the corridors of the small building and out into the cold air, the first snowflakes of the season drifting on the air around them. The air ambulance was setting down a couple hundred yards away.

"When did it start s-snowing?"

Gerard asked quietly. Frank smiled and pressed a kiss to his forehead, then hugged him close into his chest as they headed toward the medics who had gotten out to meet them. Gerard looked back at the school over Frank's shoulder and saw most of the school staring out of the classroom windows at them. He waved weakly, then they were climbing onboard, and a few minutes later they were on their way to Billings Medical Center.

Gerard was scared, but a part of him couldn't help but be excited by the fact that their baby could very well be born today...he threw up when that reality started to _really_ set in.

*

When the helicopter finally landed on the roof of Billings Medical Centre, Frank was relieved to see Dr. Sager there waiting for them. The hospital's staff had a wheelchair ready, but Frank shook his head and carried Gerard in his arms instead.

"Hello there..."

Dr. Sager said as they met up at the door of the elevator.

"How are you feeling?"

Gerard shrugged slightly.

"Mostly just scared."

"His waters broke at work and he was sick on the flight here."

Frank said as the elevator headed down to the second floor. Gerard gave him a look, and Frank gave him a look right back.

"Alright...and are you in any pain?"

Gerard chewed his lip, moving his eyes away from Frank's and to his lap.

"Some."

Frank frowned.

"You didn't say."

"I didn't want to worry you."

The elevator stopped and the doors pinged open. Dr. Sager led Frank down the hall and into a private room. There were monitors and machines already set up next to the bed.

"Alright, I'm going to just go and get you booked in. Please change into the gown and make yourself comfortable on the bed, then I'll be back to do some checks and see what's going on...ok?"

Gerard nodded as Frank carefully sat him down on the bed. Frank turned to the doctor before she left the room.

"Doc?...they will be alright, won't they?"

He couldn't help the concern in his voice. Dr. Sager smiled reassuringly at him.

"I'm sure everything will be fine. Try not to worry, your family are in good hands."

She smiled again, then left the room. Frank turned back to Gerard.

"Ok, let's get you into this stupid gown thing..."

Gerard giggled slightly, but stopped abruptly as pain flashed across his face. Frank took his hands in his.

"It's ok sweetheart, try to breathe..."

After a few moments, Gerard relaxed, panting slightly.

"Better?"

Gerard nodded, swallowing deeply.

"I'm scared Frank...what if something's wrong?...what if something happens when I'm in theatre?...Frank..."

Gerard sobbed slightly, Frank wrapped his arms around him and held him close, knowing that Gerard needed to rant right now, but that he also needed to be comforted.

"Frank, if it's a choice..."

"Gerard no."

"Frank listen...if you have to make a choice, tell them to save our baby."

Frank pulled Gerard back from his chest so that he could look in the younger man's eyes.

"Gerard no...don't even think about that. Nothing's going to go wrong; you and our baby are going to be fine."

"You don't know that...Dr. Sager told us that she's never had to deal with something like this...no one has."

"Gerard, I love you with every part of my being...but right now, shut up and listen..."

Gerard frowned, but nodded for Frank to talk.

"Yes this is new, but she has done hundreds upon hundreds of Caesarian Sections, and I know they were all on women, but she has studied all of the scans they've done on you for countless hours, and she knows what is where, and what she needs to do. If our baby has decided that today is the day, then so be it. You are soon going to be holding our child in your arms...focus on that, ok?"

Gerard took a shaky breath, then let it out slowly as he nodded.

"Ok...Frank?"

"Yes sweetheart?

"Do you think Mikey and Lucas will get here in time?"

Frank grinned.

"I taught Lucas how to drive. They'll be here."

Gerard smiled and nodded.

"True. Ok, I better get changed before Dr. Sager comes back."

Frank nodded, then helped Gerard out of his wet pants and underwear, wiping his legs clean with some paper towels while Gerard pulled off his sweater and shirt. Frank held open the gown for Gerard to slip his arms in, then tied it at the back.

"Very fetching."

Frank chuckled as he helped Gerard back onto the bed. Gerard stuck his tongue out at his husband, then shivered.

"It's cold in here."

Frank nodded and grabbed some blankets off of a chair in the corner. He carefully laid them over Gerard's legs and belly.

"Better?..."

Gerard nodded, just as there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Frank called, without taking his eyes off of his beautiful husband. The door opened and Dr. Sager poked her head in.

"How we doing in here?..."

She stepped inside and closed the door as she saw that Gerard was in the gown and in bed. Gerard smiled nervously, and Frank squeezed his hand gently.

"Ok, so I'm going to start with an ultrasound..."

The doctor moved over to the machine and turned it on...Gerard's details came up on the top of the screen straight away. She smiled at Gerard as he pushed down the blankets and pulled up the front of his gown...he was used to this part. She squeezed some of the clear gel onto the little wand device, then moved it onto Gerard's belly. Gerard flinched slightly.

"Sorry, its cold..."

Gerard smiled cause it was always cold, and he always flinched...and she always apologised. He turned his eyes to the screen. Dr. Sager moved the wand around quietly for a minute, then grinned.

"Here we are..."

She pointed to the black and white image that Gerard and Frank could easily identify as their baby now.

"So from what I can see, you're right that your water has broken, which means that your baby is ready to come meet you..."

She looked up at them with a smile.

"Are you ready?"

Gerard sobbed shakily, looking toward Frank. Frank put his arms around him gently, then turned back to the doctor.

"We're ready."

Dr. Sager smiled softly.

"Don't worry, everything's going to be ok. I'm going to go and get the theatre ready and a nurse will be in shortly to give you a pre-med. Then, once everything is set up, I'll come and get you and we'll get this baby out, ok?..."

Gerard was clinging to Frank's shirt with white knuckled fingers, but he nodded his agreement silently. The doctor looked at Frank.

"I'm sorry you can't be in the theatre Frank, but you can walk down there with us, and you should be able to see them as soon as they're out of surgery...alright?"

Frank nodded.

"Lucas and Mikey are on there way here, can someone tell them where we are when they arrive?"

"Of course. Now, try to relax, the nurse will be in with your meds in a minute."

She smiled, then left the room. Gerard broke down, sobbing into Frank's chest. Frank held him close and gently stroked his long, fine blonde hair.

"See sweetheart, everything's under control, you just need to relax."

A few minutes later, a nurse came in with a little plastic dish. In the dish was a small vial and a syringe, still in its packet. Gerard clung to Frank, burying his face in Frank's chest as the nurse prepared the pre-med, and then injected it into the cannula in the back of his hand. Gerard whined slightly as he felt a coldness spreading up his arm, but there was no pain. The nurse cleaned away her equipment, then left them with a reassuring smile.

For the next few minutes, Frank sat on the bed with Gerard curled up...as much as he could with his belly the size of a small beach ball...in his arms. Frank hummed to him to keep him calm as Gerard absently played with the buttons of Frank's shirt.

"Frank?..."

Frank hummed for Gerard to continue. Gerard looked up at him with slightly glassy eyes...the drugs were kicking in.

"If it's a boy, can we call him Shilah?"

Frank smiled.

"It’s perfect. What do you think of Spring for a middle name?...cause we fell in love in the spring."

"Shilah Spring Ieroway..."

Gerard smiled drowsily.

"I like it. But what if it's a girl?"

Frank shook his head.

"I don't think it's a girl...boys are very strong in the Iero bloodline."

"But what if it is?"

Frank chuckled.

"Well, I always liked the name Koko."

Gerard considered the name for a moment, then smiled.

"Koko Bella Ieroway."

"Bella?"

"Yeah, cause I know she’ll be beautiful."

Frank smiled fondly and pressed a kiss to Gerard's forehead.

"Then Bella it is."

The couple had been talking baby names almost from the day they’d found out about their little miracle. They’d bought baby name books and asked everyone they knew for suggestions...but they hadn’t come to a decision until now; they’d thought they had another month to decide.  
Just then, the door opened and Dr. Sager entered with two orderlies to push the bed.

"Ok guys, time to go."

Gerard whimpered, but Frank squeezed his hand as he slipped off of the bed to walk beside it, and Gerard knew that Frank would be there with him in spirt, even when he couldn't physically be.

Two corridors, an elevator ride up two floors and another four corridors later, and they were outside the operating room.

"This is as far as you can go Frank. I'll give you a minute."

Dr. Sager went in through the double doors and left them with just a nurse, who was starting to attach heart monitor pads onto Gerard's skin.

"I'm s-scared Frank."

"I know you are sweetheart, but I'm here, and soon we'll get to meet little Shilah Spring Ieroway."

"Or Koko Bella Ieroway."

Gerard said with a shaky smile. Frank chuckled, brushing Gerard's hair from his face before leaning down to lay a soft kiss to his husband's trembling lips.

"Yes, or Koko Bella. I love you Gerard."

"I l-love you t-too Frank."

"Alright, time's up..."

The doctor said as she appeared in scrubs at the door, and two men, also in scrubs, moved to wheel the bed into the theatre.

"See you soon Frank."

Frank nodded to the doctor, waved to Gerard, and then let out a shaky breath as the doors closed between them.

*

Frank was pacing in the waiting room when the door opened. He looked up and saw Mikey and Lucas.

"What's happening?"

Mikey said before anyone could even say hello. Frank took a breath.

"He's having the baby."

*

Frank had been pacing for nearly half an hour now, while Lucas sat quietly and Mikey stared out of the window at the greying sky.

"What's taking so long?..."

Frank growled as he passed his son's seat for the hundredth time.

"Shouldn't they be done by now?"

"Calm down dad, Gee's in good hands."

"I know I just...I want them safe, with me."

Mikey turned his head to watch father and son. They were so similar in so many ways, yet Lucas' youth gave him a sparkle that made Mikey go slightly weak at the knees. He knew it was wrong. He knew he shouldn’t fall for him cause he wasn’t staying; in just a few months he would be leaving for the Academy, and Mikey would let him go with a smile, cause it’s what Lucas was made for...but he would miss him, that he could never deny.

"I'm sure they'll be finished soon..."

Mikey said softly.

"Why don't you sit down, and I'll go fetch us all a coffee. You can have caffeine again now...right?"

Frank looked over at the younger man with a blank expression for a moment, before a smile spread on his lips.

"Yeah, I guess I can. Thank you Michael, coffee would be nice."

Lucas stood up.

"I'll go with you."

He took Mikey's hand and they left the waiting room. Frank huffed, he still wanted to know the whens and whys of that relationship, but he knew that Lucas could take care of himself...and anyone else who came along.

Frank paced again, sitting patiently wasn't his thing. He could feel his heart thumping a little faster and a little harder than normal as he clenched his fists at his sides. He just wanted his husband and child, safe in his arms.

"What the fuck's keeping them?"

He growled to the empty room.

*

"I'm worried."

Lucas admitted quietly as he and Mikey walked toward the cafeteria on the far side of the building.

"About?"

Mikey prompted, gently squeezing the younger man's hand.

"About dad. He's wound so tight right now, and I know he's not sleeping...I've heard him get up and leave the house in the middle of the night."

Mikey stopped walking, pulling Lucas to a stop and turning him to face him.

"You know where he's going?"

Lucas nodded.

"He's patrolling...keeping a look out for Wolf."

"But he's not been back...has he?"

"He's not shown his face, but there have been signs. I found footprints in the North paddock last week...dad's certain that they're Wolf's."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want to worry you, and dad didn't want Gerard finding out and getting scared...that wouldn’t be good in his condition."

Mikey hummed, nodding in understanding.

"That's fair enough, but it's upset you, so it's upset me."

Lucas chuckled, reaching up to gently stroke Mikey's cheek.

"You're sweet."

Mikey smiled, leaning into the touch.

"And you are tense. Can I help you with that?"

He winked and Lucas laughed, then nodded.

"Yeah, I think you can."

He took Mikey's hand again and lead him into a vacant room, closing and locking the door behind them.

*

Frank was getting worried now. He knew how long a Caesarian Section usually took, he'd read just about everything there was to read on the subject in the last couple months...but this was taking way longer. He realised that this was different from any other C-Section ever performed, but Dr. Sager had told them that it shouldn't take much more time than a normal one.  
He continued to pace, occasionally stopping to look out of the waiting room door and into the corridor that lead to the operating theatre. Why was it taking so long?...had something gone wrong?...why hadn't he been told anything?

Time ticked by and Frank was just about ready to rip someone's head off if he didn't hear something soon, when the door opened and Dr. Sager walked in...with a small blue blanketed bundle in her arms and a smile on her face. Frank froze for a second before his own smile appeared.

"Frank, come and meet your son."

Frank felt rare tears on his face as he crossed the room and carefully took the tiny infant into his arms...he didn't wipe them away. Dr. Sager smiled softly at him, noting how perfectly the tiny baby fit in his father's big, strong arms.

"He's beautiful."

Frank said in quiet awe, staring down at the little pink face and soft blonde hair.

"Do you have a name for him?"

Frank nodded.

"Yes. Shilah Spring Ieroway."

Dr. Sager smiled and made a note on the baby's chart, and the band on his ankle.

"Perfect."

Frank looked up at her and smiled, then swallowed.

"Can I see Gerard?...is he alright?"

"He's ok. He's still in recovery right now, but as soon as he's a bit more with it, we'll be moving him to his own room, and you can see him then."

Frank nodded.

"Has he seen this little one yet?"

He looked back down at his son, just as he let out a little squeaky yawn. Dr. Sager shook her head.

"Not yet, but I can take you and baby Shilah to wait in Gerard's room now, and you can introduce them as soon as he's brought through if you'd like?"

"Yes, that would be good. Lucas and Michael went to get coffee a while back and they haven't returned. Could someone tell them where we are when they do?"

"Of course. One of the nurses will tell them..."

Dr. Sager lead Frank out of the waiting room and along the corridor, then left down another corridor before leading him into a private room that was set up with a space for a bed, a crib, a couch against the far wall, and a couple of chairs.

"If you need anything, just press this button and one of the nurses will come straight in..."

She showed Frank the nurse's call button on the wall.

"I'm going to go see how Gerard's doing...do you want me to pass on a message?"

"Please. Can you tell him that I love him and I'm so very proud of him...and that we'll see him soon."

Dr. Sager smiled and nodded.

"Sure, I will."

Then she turned and left Frank and baby Shilah alone. Frank sighed softly, smiling down at the tiny life in his arms.

"Hello Shilah, I'm you dad. Welcome to the world. It's a big and scary place, but me, your other daddy and your big brother are going to show you all of it..."

He walked over to the window and looked out with a smile...the view wasn't as pretty as from his mountaintop, but it was still a nice view. He angled Shilah to face the window...even though the baby was nearly asleep, and Frank knew that at this age Shilah couldn't see much further than a couple of feet.

"That's just a tiny bit of the world my boy, but you're going to love it."

After a few minutes, baby Shilah was asleep so Frank sat down on the sofa, cradling his newborn son gently in his arms. Now, he just needed to see Gerard and everything would be perfect.


	6. Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, sorry this took longer than planned, had a busy couple weeks. I hope you’re all well, now, enjoy the chapter 😁
> 
> ❤️

"We should head back..."

Mikey said quietly, curled up against Lucas' side.

"There could be news."

Lucas sighed, running his hand through Mikey's hair.

"I guess. In a minute though...I'm comfy."

Mikey chuckled.

"Ok...in a minute."

*

Frank looked up as the door opened and Gerard was wheeled in on a hospital bed. He was wrapped up in blankets and his eyes were closed. There was a bag of saline on a stand attached to the top of the bed, with a tube running to a cannula in the back of his left hand...he was very pale.

Dr. Sager followed the bed in and offered Frank a small smile before turning to ensure that everything was set up properly. She talked quietly to the nurses as they worked, sending one off to fetch something while she checked Gerard's pulse.

Frank watched anxiously...why wasn't Gerard awake?

The nurse returned a minute later with a heart monitor, and began setting it up. Now Frank was really nervous.

"Dr. Sager?"

She turned to look at him and gave him a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry Frank, we're just taking precautions."

"Is he alright though?"

"Gerard's fine, just recovering..."

After she'd finished setting up the heart monitor...that started a steady and reassuring *beep beep beep*...she walked over and sat next to Frank on the couch. She smiled as she peered at the tiny baby, asleep in his father's arms, then looked up.

"We had an issue in recovery Frank. Gerard's blood pressure dropped and he was having some trouble breathing..."

Frank's eyes widened and he swallowed, looking over at his still sleeping husband.

"We had to put him on oxygen and give him fluids, but he reacted well and all signs are good now. He's going to be ok Frank...please don't worry."

"How can I not?..."

Frank asked, turning concerned eyes her way.

"He's my life. I can't lose him."

"You're not going to lose him Frank...he's not going anywhere."

Frank chewed his lip and nodded.

"Ok, but when will he wake up?"

Dr. Sager smiled.

"He's not unconscious Frank, just sleeping. He'll wake up when he's ready..."

She put a hand gently on Frank's arm.

"Maybe you should get some sleep too. It's always a good idea to rest when they are."

She smiled, nodding toward baby Shilah. Frank sighed...he could use forty winks.

"Yeah, I guess."

The nurses had finished what they were doing and left, so Frank stood up and carried baby Shilah over to the crib. He gently lay him down, the tiny infant fussing slightly before going quiet again. Frank leaned down and placed a soft kiss to his son's head, then moved over to the bedside and sat down on the chair next to it, carefully taking Gerard's right hand in his and kissing his pale fingertips.

"I love you Gerard..."

He whispered before turning to speak to the the doctor again, but she was gone. Frank chuckled softly then turned his eyes back to Gerard.

"Sweet dreams my love, I'll see you when you wake up."

Then he shuffled slightly to get comfortable and closed his eyes...he was asleep two minutes later.

*

When Frank woke again, it was to the sound of hushed but happy voices. He could hear Lucas and Mikey cooing over the new addition to the family, and baby Shilah making the odd little snuffly noise. He smiled, opening his eyes and stretching his aching muscles...Dr. Sager was right; he’d needed to sleep.

"Hi daddy..."

Gerard said with a soft adoring smile, tiny Shilah snuggled happily in his arms.

"Sleep well?"

Frank chuckled, moving to perch on the edge of Gerard’s bed.

"Very. And you my love?"

He gently stroked Shilah's soft little cheek with the tip of his pinkie finger, as he leaned in to press a kiss to Gerard’s pale forehead. Gerard nodded.

"Yeah. I was so scared about being knocked out...but now..."

He sighed happily, smiling down at their precious new angel.

"I’m so very glad this happened. I wouldn’t change a thing."

"We thought you were gonna sleep all day."

Mikey piped up, a smirk on his face that told Frank he was just teasing. Frank chuckled, reaching up to rub the back of his neck...it was stiff from how he’d slept.

"No Michael. If I’d done that, I would have missed out on seeing _this_ beautiful sight..."

He nodded his head toward Gerard and baby Shilah, winking at Gerard for good measure and receiving a tired, but bright smile in return.

"Besides..."

He wiggled his eyebrows at Gerard before turning a deadly serious face toward where Mikey and Lucas were sat side by side.

"I need to ask your intentions toward my son."

He raised a questioning eyebrow and saw Mikey swallow nervously, the colour practically draining from his face.

"I...I-I...we're n-not...I..."

Suddenly Lucas burst out laughing, he couldn’t take Mikey’s frightened stuttering one moment more.

"He’s _joking_ Mikes...jeez you’re easy."

Mikey looked wide eyed and stunned between father and son, unsure exactly what was happening.

"Joking?..."

He heard Gerard giggled and turned to stick his tongue out at him.

"You could’ve told me."

"Where’s the fun in that?"

Gerard giggled as Frank reached out to lovingly tuck his hair behind his ear.

"I’m sorry Michael, I couldn’t resist..."

Frank smirked, turning softer eyes toward the younger man.

"Like Lucas says; you’re too easy."

Mikey huffed, lightly hitting Lucas in the arm as he continued to laugh quietly.

"I hate you all. You’re all meanies..."

He leaned forward toward Shilah's tiny ear, lowering his voice considerably.

"Looks like it’s you and your uncle Mikey against _this_ lot. You got my back, right Shilah?"

At that moment, the very pungent and recognisable scent of baby poo filled the room, making everyone cough slightly and Frank laugh heartily.

"I guess you have your answer, _uncle Mikey_."

Mikey huffed, leaning back in his chair and crossing his arms over his chest.

"Fine, see how many diapers I change now."

Lucas chuckled and wrapped his arm around Mikey’s shoulders, leaning in to whisper in his ear...words that made Mikey blush red. Frank rolled his eyes at the ridiculous behaviour, but smiled fondly never the less. 

"Here, let me change him."

He said softly, standing from his seat on the edge of the bed and carefully taking Shilah out of Gerard’s arms. He knew that Gerard needed to rest after such a major operation...and besides, he’d missed out on a lot when Lucas was tiny, and he was determined not to do that again.

"The diapers and wipes and things are in the cabinet over there..."

Gerard pointed to a changing station with drawers underneath. Frank smiled, nodding as he headed over, cooing softly to the tiny baby in his arms.

"I can help."

Frank turned around to see Gerard pushing back his blankets and shuffling his pale legs off of the bed, with the intention of getting up to go and assist. He shook his head decisively.

"No. Get your pretty little backside back in that bed mister. You just had major surgery. Give yourself time to heal."

"I’m fine Frank."

"Pfft..."

Mikey interjected.

"Gee, you don’t know when to quit, do you..."

He left his seat by Lucas to move to Gerard’s side, carefully manoeuvring his stubborn big brother back into bed.

"You had a baby. You had _surgery_...and you had to have a blood transfusion. You need to go slow. I know it’s not your style to sit back and let others do for you...but for now at least, you’ll have to deal with it..."

He pulled the covers back up over Gerard’s legs and belly and smiled sympathetically at him.

"Ok?"

Gerard sighed, looking sadly between Mikey and Frank...then back. He hung his head slightly and nodded.

"Ok. I’ll try."

"Good..."

Frank said with clear relief in his voice.

"Now, which one of you two lovebirds are going to give me a hand here?"

Gerard giggled slightly when both Mikey and Lucas said, _almost_ in unison:

"Not it!"

Frank laughed.

"Lucas...too slow that time. Come help me."

Lucas groaned and stood up as Mikey grinned ear to ear at his small victory, he knew he wouldn’t have such luck next time.

Gerard smiled happily as he watched his perfect little family...he couldn’t remember ever being happier than right there in that very moment.

** _Time Stamp~ December 12, two and a half weeks later_ **

"Please Dr. Sager, I’m good, _Shilah's_ good...can we _please_ go home today?"

Gerard was sick of being stuck in hospital all this time. He knew why Dr. Sager had insisted on them staying of course, but that didn’t make it any easier. It didn’t make the bed more comfortable, or the nights quieter; with other babies crying on and off throughout the night...and it certainly didn’t make the food any more appetising. He was longing for his and Frank's big comfy bed, for the peace and quiet of their perfect, _private_ cabin...and for food that actually tasted like food, and not like reconstituted, flavourless mush.

"Hmm..."

Dr. Sager picked up Gerard’s chart and scanned his obs from the last 12 hours. Gerard crossed his fingers beneath baby Shilah's tiny sleeping head. Dr. Sager looked up and studied Gerard critically for a moment.

"If I let you go..."

Gerard’s eyes lit up and a bright smile spread on his face, his posture going from relaxed to alert in a second. Dr. Sager held up a hand to still Gerard’s excitement, and Gerard’s smile slipped slightly.

"I said _if_ I let you go..."

Gerard swallowed and nodded, taking a breath and trying to appear calm and relaxed again. Dr. Sager smiled.

" _If_ I let you go home today, I will be giving Frank, Lucas and Mikey _strict_ instructions to not let you lift a finger around the house for at least a couple of weeks. You will of course be allowed to care for baby Shilah..."

She reached out to stroke one finger lightly over the sleeping infants soft pink cheek, smiling fondly.

"...but you will accept as much assistance with him as you are offered, and after getting to know your little family these past few weeks, I’d say you’ll probably have more help than you’ll know what to do with."

Gerard chuckled softly, gazing down at his perfect little boy with more love than he ever thought imaginable.

"I think you’re right there."

Dr. Sager smiled.

"Gerard, your body is still healing and you need to give it time..."

She sighed heavily and Gerard looked up questioningly.

"I’m going to let you go home..."

Gerard smiled wide, relief clear on his face.

"But you’ve got to promise me you’ll take things easy...Ok?"

Gerard nodded, barely able to contain himself.

"Ok, I will. I’m pretty sure I won’t have any choice..."

He giggled as Frank, Lucas and Mikey chose that moment to return from the hotel across the street, where the younger two had been staying.

"Will I?"

Frank raised an eyebrow as he crossed the room in two long strides before leaning in to first kiss the top of Shilah's head, then Gerard’s pink lips.

"Will you what baby?"

Gerard smiled lovingly up at his gorgeous husband.

"I was saying that I won’t have a choice but to take it easy when Dr. Sager lets me go home...today."

Frank grinned, turning to look at the doctor.

"Today?"

"Yep. Gerard’s healing well and Shilah’s doing great, so I don’t see why not...as long as you three promise me that Gerard won’t be allowed to lift a finger around the house for at least the next two weeks..."

She looked round at the three men with a serious expression...all three nodded.

"Deal?"

"Of course, Dr. Sager. I guarantee it..."

Frank said with the same wide grin on his face. He heard Gerard huff slightly at being treated like an invalid; as he knew he would, and turned back toward him.

"Don’t worry baby, you’ll be so busy cuddling little man here..."

He tickled Shilah’s chin lightly, grinning when he received a small noise in return.

"...and receiving visits from every man woman and child in town to be worried about such boring things as house work."

"Yeah, I’d put money on the entire _county_ wanting to come meet my little brother..."

Lucas laughed.

"He’s big news you know."

Gerard sighed, rolling his eyes and chuckling softly.

"Yeah, I guess he would be. After all, how many babies are born from two men anyway."

They all laughed, happy in the knowledge that they were _all_ going to be going home today.


	7. Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, sorry for the wait...hope you like Christmas, cause it’s here 😊
> 
> Enjoy
> 
> ❤️🖤❤️

** _Time Stamp~ December 24, 11:25 at night_ **

Gerard was fast asleep in bed and baby Shilah was tucked up in his crib, tiny coos and sighs leaving his perfect lips as he slept.   
Meanwhile, in the living room:

"Why do we have to wrap this one up? It’s not like Shilah will be able to rip the paper off...or even know what it is."

Mikey grumbled quietly as he helped Frank and Lucas to wrap the rather large and awkwardly shaped gift. Lucas playfully swatted the older man around the back of his head with the cardboard tube from one of the many rolls of wrapping paper they’d gotten through that night.

"Because it’s Christmas, doofus. And because Gerard hasn’t seen this yet, and we want it to be a surprise...Ok?"

Mikey huffed, but smiled anyway.

"Fine..."

He sighed, attempting to hold two pieces of paper together so that Frank could apply the scotch tape.

"But I’m sure there’s got to be an easier way than this."

Frank laughed quietly.

"Well if there is, I sure don’t know it. Come on, we’re nearly done with this one."

"Yeah, and just 988 left to go."

Mikey said with a comically put upon tone as he tipped his chin toward the pile of as yet unwrapped presents still sitting on the couch. Lucas laughed, shaking his head at his...boyfriend.

"Stop whining Mikes, or I’ll tie a red ribbon round your neck and give you something to whine about."

Mikey’s eyes went wide and he glanced quickly at Frank, who was trying really hard not to bust out laughing, then back at Lucas as his cheeks turned the same red as the wrapping paper they were currently fighting with. Lucas wiggled his eyebrows at him and winked...and Mikey swallowed heavily. He didn’t complain one more time that night.

** _Time Stamp~ December 25, Christmas Morning, 6:45 am_ **

"Morning angel..."

Frank murmured, waving a full mug of hazelnut coffee under Gerard’s nose and making the younger man smile happily as his eyes fluttered open.

"Merry Christmas."

"Hi...merry Christmas Frank. That for me?"

Gerard asked, eyeing the deliciously scented drink hopefully. Frank nodded, smiling at his beloved.

"Yeah. Here..."

He handed it to him with a smile after Gerard sat himself up against their pillows.

"We let you sleep in..."

He nodded toward the empty crib in the corner, drawing Gerard’s eye.

"Lucas and Mikey are changing Shilah...well, _trying_ to anyway."

He smirked. Gerard giggled over his drink, pale hands wrapped around the mug to warm them.

"Should we help?"

Frank looked thoughtful for a moment, then grinned and shook his head.

"They’re big boys, I’m sure they can figure it out between them..."

Gerard smiled and sipped his drink, Frank knew exactly how he liked it. Frank stood up from his perch on the edge of their bed, turning to pick up Gerard’s robe; the fluffy purple one Frank bought him when they first discovered that Gerard was pregnant...a gift to celebrate and to remind Gerard that Frank would always keep him warm and safe. He turned back, robe in hand.

"Do you want to shower first, or go open presents?"

Gerard’s eyes widened.

"Presents?...when did you have time?..."

He frowned slightly, looking down into his drink.

"I’ve not got anyone anything..."

He looked up sadly.

"I’m sorry. I was gonna go shopping the other Saturday...the one just after I was rushed into hospital to give birth."

Frank shook his head, joining Gerard back on the bed and cupping his face between his palms.

"You’ve got nothing to apologise for my love. You’ve given me the most incredible gift in our beautiful son, I couldn’t want for more..."

Gerard didn’t look completely convinced. Frank leaned in to gently kiss his soft pink lips.

"You and Shilah are all _any_ of us could want...Ok?"

Gerard sighed, reluctantly accepting Frank’s words. He just wished he could’ve had something to wrap up for each of them, that’s all.

"Ok..."

He smiled softly.

"I think I’ll take my shower later. Let’s go do presents now, yeah?"

Frank smiled, taking Gerard’s empty mug and handing him his robe.

"Sounds good beautiful, as long as I can join you in the shower."

He winked, turning toward the door as Gerard slipped out of bed and pulled on the robe, sighing happily at the warmth.

"Sounds perfect to me."

Frank looked back and grinned as Gerard moved to his side and took his hand, before they left the bedroom and headed through to the living room together.

*

Mikey and Lucas had _somehow_ managed to get baby Shilah changed and dressed, and were looking pretty pleased with themselves when Frank and Gerard walked in, hand in hand with happy smiles on their faces.

"Morning Gee..."

Mikey grinned.

"Merry Christmas."

Gerard smiled softly.

"You too Mikes, and merry Christmas Lucas."

Lucas smiled and nodded, standing up with Shilah in his arms.

"Merry Christmas. Little man here didn’t really want to get dressed, but we insisted."

"Oh, is that right?..."

Frank cooed, taking his second born out of his first born's arms.

"You wanted to stay in your jim-jams, huh buddy?"

Shilah’s tiny fist grabbed onto Frank’s finger, and Gerard could swear that Frank melted.

"He’s like his daddy..."

Gerard said with a smile, tickling Shilah’s chin.

"I never wanted to get dressed at Christmas either."

Mikey chuckled, joining his family’s little circle.

"Yeah, but Grandma wouldn’t allow that..."

He smirked, straightening his back and putting on a high pitched, posh voice.

"Night clothes are for sleeping. It’s daytime, you should be properly dressed in a suit and tie, with long johns underneath."

Gerard burst out laughing, lightly whacking him on the arm.

"Oh my God! You’re terrible Mikey...sounds just like her though."

Frank smiled fondly, watching the brothers' bond and hoping that Lucas and Shilah would have that too.

"She sounds like a fascinating woman."

Gerard and Mikey both smiled.

"Yeah, she was..."

Gerard sighed...he really did miss her sometimes. Shaking off his nostalgia, he smiled wide.

"So, you were saying something about presents?"

*

About an hour and a half later, surrounded by opened presents...mostly for Shilah...and multicoloured gift wrap that would have to be picked up at some point before the end of the day...Frank, Lucas and Mikey watched as Gerard unwrapped the last gift; the one that had taken nearly an hour to wrap the night before.  
Gerard’s eyes widened with amazement as he peeled back the wrappings to reveal a beautiful wooden rocking horse. It was exquisite; clearly hand carved with love over a great many hours. He turned to look at his family; Mikey and Lucas snuggled together on one couch, while Frank sat on the other with Shilah asleep in his arms.

"It’s beautiful!..."

He breathed, eyes glistening with happy tears. He looked at Frank.

"Did you...?"

Frank smiled.

"I made it when Lucas was little. It’s been in storage for a long time, and it was Lucas' idea to fetch it out and restore it...that’s all _his_ work."

Gerard looked back at the rocking horse, his fingers ghosting over the dark polished wood. He sniffed quietly rubbing the end of his nose with his back of his fingers before turning to address his wonderful stepson.

"Lucas...thank you. I love it."

Lucas grinned.

"You’re welcome. I remember how much I loved it when I was a kid, before I was old enough to ride for real..."

He shrugged one shoulder, chuckling softly.

"I figured it was my baby brother's turn now."

Gerard grinned wide.

"I think he’s going to love it too..."

He looked between the most important men in his life.

"Thank you. I think this is the best Christmas I ever had."

Mikey laughed fondly.

"Yeah, it’s _definitely_ better than the one when you were 17."

Gerard groaned, pulling a face.

"Oh God! Don’t remind me."

He buried his face in his hands. Frank tilted his head, one eyebrow raised.

"What happened?"

Gerard groaned again, picking up the nearest stuffed animal to hide behind. Mikey giggled.

"Gee decided he wanted to cook Christmas dinner for the family. There were 18 people there; cousins, aunts and uncles...everyone. Normally Grandma cooked, and Gee usually helped, but this time he wanted to do it alone."

"And?"

Lucas prompted when Mikey started giggling so much he couldn’t speak. Gerard groaned loudly and re-emerged from behind the stuffed cat.

"And I gave everyone food poisoning. The entire family ended up in the ER on Christmas night."

"Oh wow..."

Lucas said, trying not to burst out laughing.

" _That's_ impressive!"

"It was a nightmare!...Grandma wouldn’t let me in the kitchen for the next six months."

"So much vomit!"

Mikey exclaimed before falling into a fit of uncontrollable laughter at his brother's expense. Gerard frowned and threw the stuffed cat at Mikey’s head in annoyance.

"Hey!...it’s not like _you_ can cook any better."

"I can cook, I just choose not to."

Gerard raised an eyebrow.

"One word Mikey; toast."

Mikey stopped laughing and frowned.

"You promised never to mention that."

Gerard shrugged, a soft giggle leaving his lips.

"I lied."

Frank chuckled, looking between the squabbling siblings.

"So what’s the significance of toast?"

Gerard grinned.

"Mikey set fire to the kitchen in the college dorms...while making toast."

Mikey huffed.

"Fine, I _can’t_ cook...satisfied?"

"Perfectly."

Gerard replied with a grin as he walked over to sit next to Frank. Frank laughed, wrapping one arm around Gerard’s narrow shoulders and pulling him in tight to his side.

"Well, it’s a good thing _I’m_ cooking today then, isn’t it."

"With my help..."

Lucas added, standing up and heading toward the kitchen.

"What should I set the oven to dad?"

"240. Thanks."

Lucas smiled and nodded, then set about the preparations.

*

The meal was delicious. Frank and Lucas had worked together to cook the roast beef, creamy mashed potatoes and winter vegetables...and _everyone_ had seconds. Baby Shilah had even slept through lunch, letting them all enjoy their time together without interruption...it was a good day.

Well, it was good until a little after 3 in the afternoon, when the sound of an engine disrupted their game of charades. Frank frowned, getting up from the couch to go look out of the window. He frowned even more when he saw who it was.

"Fuck..."

He muttered, fists clenching at his sides.

"Not today, please."

"Who is it?"

Gerard asked, walking over to Frank’s side with Shilah held against his shoulder as he burped him. Frank turned serious eyes toward his husband.

"Sweetheart, take Shilah into the bedroom. I’ll deal with this."

"Dad, is it?"

Frank nodded.

"Yes..."

He looked over to Lucas and Mikey.

"Both of you in the bedroom too. This is between me and Wolf."

"I can help."

Lucas offered. Frank shook his head.

"No. I want you to keep Gee, Shilah and Mikey safe...Ok?"

Lucas nodded.

"Ok. Come on guys."

He took Mikey’s hand and held out his other toward Gerard. Gerard frowned, standing his ground.

"Frank, what makes you think I want to hide?"

Frank chuckled, cupping Gerard’s cheek just as a sharp knock sounded on the door. He glanced over, then looked at Gerard softly.

"I know you don’t want to, but please do it...for me?"

Gerard sighed and nodded.

"Ok..."

He tiptoed to press a soft kiss to Frank’s lips.

"Just be safe, yeah?"

"I will..."

Frank grinned as a second knock sounded, more urgent this time.

"Now scoot."

Gerard smiled softly, then turned to follow Lucas and Mikey through to the bedrooms at the back of the house. Frank sucked in a deep breath...then let it out slowly before going to open the door.

"Wolf."

"Skah."

Frank rolled his eyes.

"My name's Frank, you know that."

"Oops..."

Wolf chuckled, taking off his hat.

"Well _Frank_...I gave you far more time than I said I would, mainly because of your unexpected new arrival. Congrats by the way."

"Thanks."

Frank replied monotonously, trying really hard to keep his temper in check. Wolf gave a half shrug.

"That Ok. So, now I’m back and the Elders _insist_ on your assistance. Matto asked me to tell you that he was wrong, and that if you come to the reservation, you’ll get a personal apology straight from his lips."

Frank raised an eyebrow.

"Really?...wow, that’s _nearly_ enough to get me there."

Wolf chuckled.

"And what _would_ it take, I wonder."

"An apology from Tenaya, nothing less."

Wolf whistled out a breath.

"Well, not sure I can swing that...but maybe _this_ will help?"

Wolf pulled his hand out of his pocket, holding a photograph. Frank hesitated a moment, then accepted the photo. He looked at it for a few seconds, brow furrowed until his eyes suddenly widened and he looked up at a Wolf in disbelief.

"It can’t be...can it?"

Wolf chuckled.

"Yeah, that’s Tavvi. She’s 18 now, and the spitting image of her momma."

"How _is_ Chenoa?...I haven’t seen her since..."

Frank frowned and Wolf finished his sentence for him.

"Since Beth died?"

Frank sighed.

"Yes. Chenoa hated that I wasn’t there for her at the end. She blamed me...probably still does."

Wolf shook his head.

"No, she forgave you a long time ago. Why do you think it was you I was sent to fetch?"

Frank looked up from the photo of his niece-by marriage.

"I don’t know. You haven’t exactly _told_ me yet."

Wolf chuckled.

"You haven’t let me..."

He sighed.

"Ok, so here it is. Tavvi has been promised to a boy called Enapay, but she’s as headstrong as Beth was. She was seeing a pale face who called himself Kellin, but we have strong reason to believe it was a fake name. One month ago, this _Kellin_ went to the feed store where Tavvi works, and forced her into his car...they drove off and we haven’t seen her since."

"Damn!...no wonder Matto is willing to apologise to me, if his granddaughter has been kidnapped. What does he want me to do; hunt this Kellin down and bring Tavvi back? Isn’t that a job for the Feds?"

Wolf laughed out loud.

"No Frank, he just needs you to go talk to her. We contacted the Feds right after Kellin took her and they tracked them down...but Tavvi's eighteen, and she said she’d gone of her own accord. Matto remembers how good you were when Chenoa ran that time. He hopes you’ll be as good with this."

"Hmm..."

Frank hummed thoughtfully.

"So this is why you came here now, but she hadn’t gone when you first showed up...why did the Elders want me then?"

"Matto hoped that you could talk to her, make her see sense and settle down with Enapay. Now though..."

Wolf rubbed his hand over the back of his neck, sighing tiredly.

"We have reason to believe she’s in LA. Will you go?"

Frank frowned, glancing toward the bedrooms.

"I have a family of my own to take care of. I’d have to talk to them first."

Wolf nodded.

"Of course. Look, I’m staying at the b&b on Bay Road. Please come see me when you’ve decided...one way or the other."

Frank sighed heavily.

"I will."

Wolf smiled, turning toward the door as he put his hat back on.

"By the way Frank..."

He said, pausing in the doorway. Frank raised an eyebrow.

"Merry Christmas."

Frank chuckled humourlessly.

"To you too Wolf. I’ll see you in a couple of days."

Wolf tipped his hat, then left...walking to his truck, climbing in and driving away. Frank sighed with relief...that had gone better than he could’ve hoped for. Now he just needed to get his family's opinions.

*

Frank was sat at the kitchen table with a thoughtful frown on his face when Gerard ventured out of the bedroom several minutes later.

"Frank?"

"Hmm?..."

Frank looked up, smiling when he saw Gerard.

"Hey baby. You Ok?"

Gerard nodded, leaving the doorway and crossing the room. He smiled as he sat down in Frank’s lap, arms winding around the larger man's neck.

"Yeah. You?"

Frank sighed, wrapping his arms around Gerard’s body and pulling him in close, burying his face in his husband’s chest and breathing him in...Gerard’s soft scent of honey body wash and strawberry shampoo calmed him.

"I’m good. I need to talk to you, Lucas and Mikey though..."

He said as he lifted his head to look into Gerard’s pretty eyes. Gerard frowned slightly, chewing his lip nervously.

"Is it bad?"

Frank shook his head.

"Yes, kind of..."

He leaned in to press his lips to Gerard’s collarbone, making the younger shiver in his arms.

"Is Shilah asleep?"

"Yeah, Lucas and Mikey have him in their room. Do you want me to get them now?"

Frank shook his head, hands sliding down to cup Gerard’s bottom, lifting him up as he stood.

"No. I just need to be inside you right now."

Gerard let out a small, desperate sound as he clung to his husband.

"That sounds good to me."

He whispered as Frank headed through to their bedroom, kicking the door shut on the way.


	8. Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there guys and dolls, how’s you? 😘
> 
> Thank you for waiting so patiently for this, so without further ado...enjoy 😁
> 
> 🖤❤️🖤

** _Time Stamp~ December 25, Christmas evening, 7:55pm._ **

Frank and Gerard emerged from their bedroom to find the rest of their little family sat on the rug in front of the fire. Baby Shilah was awake in Lucas' arms as Mikey wiggled a stuffed bunny toy and blew raspberries at the slightly confused looking infant. Frank chuckled, tightening his arm around Gerard’s slender body as they approached.

"Well now, if that isn’t a cute sight. I wish I had my camera...hang on..."

He pulled his cellphone from his pocket and clicked straight into the camera app, snapping pictures quickly before the scene dissolved.

"I do!"

"Daaaad."

Lucas groaned; he was famously camera shy, but with the baby in his arms there wasn’t much he could do to stop it. Gerard giggled.

"Don’t pout Lucas, these are for the family album."

Lucas rolled his eyes, but after a brief huff...he relaxed, smiling softly for the camera as several pictures were taken. 

After a while, once the phone had been put down and everyone had settled either on the couch or the rug...

"So dad..."

Lucas began a little hesitantly.

"Tell us."

Frank looked up from where Shilah was sucking on his fingertip and kicking his little legs about.

"Huh?"

Lucas rolled his eyes.

"Tell us what happened with Il lupo."

Frank grunted a half laugh, devoid of humour.

"He congratulated us on our new arrival."

"And?"

Gerard prompted gently, his hand carefully taking Frank’s larger one. Frank looked at him and sighed, the hardness that had entered his face upon Wolf's mention draining away. He turned back to face Lucas.

"Your mother has a sister called Chenoa, and she has one daughter called Tavvi. I haven’t seen the girl since she was about four years old, and she’s eighteen now...and she may have been kidnapped, or possibly run away with some boy to California. The Elders want her found and brought home, not just for her safety, but because she’s been promised to another boy...presumably to strengthen ties with another family."

"An arranged marriage?!..."

Gerard said in quiet outrage.

"I didn’t think that sort of thing happened anymore."

Frank chuckled darkly.

"Yes, unfortunately it is still somewhat common among a few tribes..."

He looked back at Lucas again.

"... _that_ is part of the reason your mother cut ties with them."

"You said she might’ve been kidnapped...and they want _you_ to find this girl?..."

Mikey asked in disbelief. Frank nodded.

"But why you? From what I understand, you cut them out of your life a long time ago...why would they come to _you_ for this and not go to the police?"

"Because they went to the Feds already. Apparently Tavvi told them that she’d gone of her own accord, so the Feds couldn’t do anything...and because the Elders know if _anyone_ can persuade her to come home, or rescue her from trouble, it will be me..."

He sighed, looking down at Shilah, cradled in the crook of his elbow, now peacefully asleep with one tiny fist wrapped around Frank’s pinky finger.

"Chenoa ran too, and I was the one to bring her back...it seems fitting I do the same for her daughter, I guess."

Silence fell for several long minutes as they all thought this through...then, softly...

"You should say yes."

Frank turned his head to look at Gerard, eyebrows raised cause he wasn’t sure he’d heard right.

"Baby..."

Gerard looked up to meet his eyes.

"This girl, Tavvi?..."

Frank nodded once.

"She’s your niece...not by blood of course, but still..."

He swallowed thickly as Frank nodded again.

"Do it for Beth."

Frank’s breath hitched and Gerard felt it, offering him a sad smile.

"You know it’s the right thing to do dad..."

Frank turned damp eyes to his first born.

"I’ll look after this place, and our little family...you won’t need to worry, just get the job done then come home."

Shaky breaths filled and left Frank’s lungs as he looked at each of the three men in turn.

"You _all_ think I should go?"

They all nodded, but there were tears already running down Gerard’s pale cheeks.

"Of course I don’t _want_ you to...but we both know you’ll regret it if you don’t. You won’t rest easy until you know that girl is safely back with her family...now _will_ you?"

Frank sighed heavily, scrubbing his free hand over his face and closing his eyes for a moment.

"You’re right..."

He opened his eyes, looking at them all.

"I wish you weren’t, but you are..."

He looked down at Shilah’s sweet little sleeping face and sighed again.

"I’ll go see Wolf tomorrow, and tell him I’ll do it."

Lucas let out a heavy sigh and nodded, smiling sadly.

"You’ll find her dad...I just know it."

** _Time Stamp~ December 27, 5:47am._ **

Frank leaned over Shilah’s crib, pressing a soft kiss to his sleeping son's forehead before standing up straight and turning around. Gerard was laying on his side in their big bed with his head propped up on his hand as he silently watched his husband prepare to leave.

"I’ll be back before you know it..."

Gerard swallowed, a tear running down his cheek.

"Please don’t cry baby..."

Frank stepped up to the bedside and sat on the edge, reaching out to tuck Gerard’s messy bed hair behind his ear. Gerard leaned into the touch...it was the last he would get for God only knew how long. Frank leaned in and softly kissed his pouting lips.

"I love you so, so much sweetheart. And I love our little miracle over there..."

He tipped his head toward the crib, but held eye contact with Gerard the whole time.

"...and our family. I’m going to find that girl and bring her home, then I’m never going to leave your side again."

Gerard sniffed quietly, eyes big and wet.

"Promise?"

Frank smiled down at his beautiful husband.

"Yes, I promise angel..."

He glanced at the clock on the wall...5:54. He sighed heavily...no point putting this off, leaving wasn’t going to get any easier.

"I have to go now baby. Be good for me, yes?...stay out of trouble?"

Gerard chuckled slightly, though tears still fell.

"I will...and you be careful. I don’t want the sheriff turning up to tell me you got yourself hurt...or, or worse."

"Hey, none of that! Don’t even _think_ that way baby..."

Frank pulled Gerard into his arms, the blankets slipping from the younger man's body to reveal his soft pale skin.

"Nothing’s going to happen to me, you hear?...nothing."

Gerard sobbed into Frank’s chest for several minutes before he was finally able to pull himself together enough to let Frank go.

"I love you Frank."

"I love you too..."

Frank smiled sadly, standing and picking up the large army-green rucksack he’d packed last night, and hefted it onto his shoulder.

"I’ll call you when I get to California...and every other chance I get. Ok?"

"You better..."

Gerard said with a raised eyebrow and just a hint of the sass that Frank loved so much.

"...or you’ll be in _big_ trouble mister."

Frank grinned.

"I’ll see you soon."

Then he turned and left. He purposely didn’t say goodbye, cause that meant the end...and it _wasn’t_ the end; he was damn well coming back, and soon. He walked through to the kitchen and found Lucas there, sat with the truck's keys in his hand.

"Come on then, I cancelled your cab. There’s no way they’d make it up here with the snow like it is, so I’m driving you to the airport."

Frank smiled gratefully...he didn’t know how he’d cope without his family around him, but just knowing that Lucas was there to keep them all safe, would make it just a tiny bit easier to bare.

** _Time Stamp~ December 27, 4.13pm-California time_ **

Frank’s plane had just landed at LAX, and as soon as his feet were back on solid ground, he pulled out his cellphone, turned it on, then called Gerard’s number. It took just one ring before it was picked up.

"Frank?..."

Gerard’s excited voice came down the line and made Frank smile.

"Are you in LA?"

"Yes baby, and I miss you so much already."

"I miss you too...we all do."

Frank closed his eyes, just stood at the side of the walkway as the other passengers flooded past him toward security. They didn’t exist to him right now.

"I’m going to hire a car and go straight to the place the Feds found Tavvi. With any luck she’ll still be there and I can drag her selfish ass home tonight..."

Frank really didn’t like flying, and he already didn’t like LA.

"Hopefully I’ll be home in the morning."

"Well that would be fantastic, but unfortunately something tells me it isn’t going to be that easy."

Frank sighed down the phone.

"I know, you’re right. Just wishful thinking on my part."

Gerard giggled slightly.

"Well, I know _I’ll_ be thinking of your...parts."

Frank chuckled, then groaned slightly.

"Baby, as much as I’d love to continue this _particular_ conversation...I happen to be stood in the arrivals building of the airport, and I might get arrested if I get a hard-on here."

Gerard laughed quietly...Frank guessed that Shilah was probably asleep, or that Mikey and Lucas were nearby.

"Ok, well you call me when you’re somewhere more private then, and maybe I’ll tell you what I’m _not_ wearing."

Frank could practically hear Gerard’s blush, and he knew he had to end the call before he really _was_ arrested.

"Oh baby, what am I going to do with you, hmm?..."

He laughed.

"I better go join the queue for security now, else I could end up here all night. I’ll call you later, Ok?"

"Ok Frank...I love you."

"I love you too. Talk later."

Then he hung up, almost immediately regretting it and wanting to call back...just to hear Gerard’s sweet voice again. But he didn’t, instead, he pocketed his phone, hitched his rucksack higher up onto his shoulder and headed toward the back of what he thought was probably the longest queue he’d seen in his life. Damn, this was going to take forever.

** _Time Stamp~ December 27, 5:26pm-Montana time_ **

Gerard put his phone down on Frank’s pillow and curled up on his side, tears streaming down to soak his own pillow as his body shook with sobs. He really _really_ wished he’d asked Frank not to go.

Mikey frowned sadly and moved away from where he’d been listening at Gerard and Frank’s closed bedroom door. He walked through to the living room to find Lucas sat feeding Shilah in the big armchair by the fire.

"Hey."

He muttered, flopping onto the couch limply. Lucas offered him a sad smile.

"Is Gerard Ok?"

Mikey shook his head, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose.

"He put on a brave face while he was on the phone to Frank, but the second they hung up, he was crying his heart out. I could hear him through the door."

"Do you think we should do something?"

Mikey sighed, opening his eyes to look at the younger man.

"Like what?...short of bringing Frank home right now, I don’t think anything is going to help him feel better. Do you?"

Lucas frowned, looking down at his tiny brother in his arms.

"Well, we can definitely help look after Shilah. That’s something, right?"

Mikey chuckled fondly, moving over to perch on the arm of Lucas’ chair.

"Yeah, I think that’s about as much as we _can_ do...and I think it’ll help, if only a little bit..."

He leaned down to press a soft kiss to Lucas’ forehead, then stood up and headed over to the kitchen.

"Coffee?"

Lucas grinned.

"You know me so well."

Mikey chuckled and set to making their drinks...yeah, he felt like he was at least _starting_ to know the younger man, who was so much older than his years.

** _Time Stamp~ December 27, 6:30pm-LA time_ **

Frank had successfully made it through all the various security checks, then gone straight to the airport's car rental centre. He’d rented a black 2000 Chevrolet Impala and headed straight for the address Wolf had given him; which turned out to be a one bedroom apartment above a laundromat. Knocking on the door, he wasn’t really sure what to expect...but it certainly wasn’t the old guy that answered the door in a bathrobe after nearly three minutes of waiting.

"Good evening sir."

Frank said politely, trying not to scare the considerably smaller man. The man narrowed his eyes at his visitor suspiciously.

"What do you want? I’m busy. My show's on."

Frank could hear some game show coming from the tv inside, he thought it could be Wheel Of Fortune, but he wasn’t sure. He smiled apologetically.

"I’m sorry to bother you, but I’m looking for..."

He held out the photo Wolf had given him.

"...this girl. I was told she lived here?"

The man, already grumpy from missing his show, huffed as he leaned in to study the picture, squinting slightly in the dim light of the hall.

"Hmm, looks like the girl I saw the day I moved in..."

He looked up at Frank.

"She’s Indian, right?"

Frank fought the urge to correct the man, and just nodded.

"Yessir. She’s my niece, and her mom's really worried about her."

The man huffed again, seeming unbothered by Frank’s plight.

"Yeah, her and those men left the day I moved in..."

Frank’s eyebrows rose...along with his hackles. _Men_?

"I think they said they was moving to San Diego, somewhere near a golf club. They was worried about balls smashin' their windows."

Frank frowned. 

"You said; men?...not man?"

"Yeah..."

The man grunted, clearly over this conversation.

"Three men. Now, can I get back to my show?"

Frank sighed.

"Sure. Sorry again..."

Before the words had even left his lips, the man had slammed the door and Frank could hear several chains and locks being clicked into place. He rolled his eyes.

"Nice talking to you."

He muttered, before turning and heading back outside to his rental car. Getting in, he sat and thought for a minute. Would it be better to drive down there, or go back to the airport and get a flight down? He quickly decided that driving would be best...it was only a couple of hours away, traffic permitting of course. Sighing heavily, cause this was looking like it was going to be a lot more trouble than he’d expected, Frank started the car, put it in gear and started off on his journey down the coast.

** _Time Stamp~ December 27, 8:43pm-San Diego time_ **

Frank arrived in San Diego with almost no clue where to start his search. He decided that checking into a hotel for the night would be a good idea, then he could get a fresh start in the morning. He drove around for a while until he found a Motel 6 in Mission Valley, that had a vacancy sign up out front and just happened to be close to Riverwalk Golf Club. He pulled into the parking lot and found a space easily...apparently they had quite a _few_ vacancies. He grabbed his rucksack off the back seat and headed inside.

The reception area was well lit, but Frank could tell that it was decorated to a company standard. He was pretty sure that he could’ve walked into _any_ Motel 6, and it would look virtually identical. He didn’t really care though, all he needed was somewhere to put his head down for the night, and once his eyes were closed, the colour of the paint on the walls would be totally inconsequential.

He walked up to the reception desk and smiled at the young man stood behind it. The man looked to be in his mid twenties, was clean shaven, had short blonde hair and was wearing a dark blue suit and tie, with a crisp white shirt and a name badge that read; _Paul, Reception Head_. Paul smiled back at him.

"Good evening sir, here to check in?"

Frank nodded.

"I hope so. I don’t have a reservation, and I’m not sure how long I’m going to be staying."

Paul smiled wide, his fingers dancing over his computer's keyboard for a moment.

"That’s not going to be a problem sir. We have several vacancies right now, and two rooms that aren’t booked at all for the next month."

Frank smiled in relief.

"Well that’s good then...though I’m hoping I won’t be here that long."

Paul chuckled.

"Fair enough. So..."

He looked at his screen.

"We have one of our standard rooms, that has a queen size bed, a full shower room, a tv with expanded cable and free WiFi for 54 dollars and 99 cents per night...or we have our premium room, that has all of the same things as the standard, _plus_ a coffee maker, hair dryer, alarm clock, and an iron and ironing board, for $64.99."

He looked up at Frank with a questioning smile. Frank sighed quietly...he didn’t need all those extras.

"The standard room will be fine, thanks."

Paul nodded.

"Very good sir. I’ll need to take a copy of some form of i.d...plus I’ll need to put your credit or debit card details into our system. Don’t worry, no money will be taken from your account until you check out."

"That’s fine."

Frank handed over his driver's licence and bank card, and kept a close eye as Paul entered the details onto his computer before handing them back, along with an orange credit card sized door card, with the number 17 printed on it in bold black type. Paul gave Frank directions to the room and Frank thanked him, then hitched his rucksack back up onto his shoulder and walked away in the direction he’d been told. Five minutes later, Frank was in his room, locking the door and dumping his bag onto a chair before kicking off his boots and flopping onto the bed at last...today had been a long day, and he could really do with closing his eyes and just going to sleep. First things first though; pulling his cellphone out of his jacket pocket, Frank dialled Gerard’s number...there was no way he could sleep until he’d heard his beautiful husband's sweet sweet voice down the line. The phone rang just twice before it was answered...

"Frank?"

"Hi baby."

"Oh God Frank, I miss you so much."

Frank really regretted saying yes to Wolf for several reasons, the main one being that he absolutely _hated_ being away from Gerard.

"I miss you too, so much."

They talked for what felt like hours, though it still didn’t feel long enough. Gerard cried, and Frank would be lying if he said he hadn’t let a few tears fall himself...but he had to stay strong, cause it was the only way he could even _hope_ to make it through this.


	9. Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG!...it’s been soooooo long 😳  
> I’m sorry for the wait, and this is _kinda_ fillerish...but it’s something, so don’t throw fruit at me please 🥺
> 
> Anyway...enjoy.
> 
> ❤️🖤❤️

** _Time Stamp~ December 28, 4:32am-Montana time_ **

Gerard woke up to the sound of Shilah’s soft cries. Rubbing his tired, tear swollen eyes, he climbed out of bed and walked barefoot over to the crib. 

"Hey there little angel, what’s wrong with you?..."

He reached in and scooped the tiny baby and his blankets up into his arms, cradling him against his chest as he spoke softly to him.

"It’s ok Shilah. I know you miss your daddy, I miss him too...but he’ll be back soon..."

He really hoped that was true.   
Gently rocking Shilah in his arms wasn’t stopping his cries, and his diaper wasn’t full or wet, so Gerard decided to try feeding him. Not having his own milk supply, he had to rely on formula, so he quietly opened the door and walked through toward the kitchen. With only the glow of the full moon to light his way, Gerard carried Shilah over to the refrigerator, moving the tiny bundle to his left arm so his right was free, then opened the door, squinting at the brightness, and grabbed one of the bottles Mikey had made up the day before...he’d really have to thank his brother later. Closing the door, he turned and walked over to the bottle warmer that was sat next to the stove, singing softly to Shilah the whole time.

"The water is wide,  
I can't get over.  
Neither have I, the wings to fly..."

He placed the bottle into the warmer and turned it on.

"So, go and get me to a boat to carry both,  
My love and I.  
Must I be bound,  
And she go free?  
Am I to love,  
While she don't love me?  
Why should I act the childish part,  
And love a girl that breaks my heart?..."

He rocked Shilah gently as he sang, the infant's cries now lessened to the odd whimper, wet eyes looking up at his mom curiously.

"There is a ship,  
Out on the sea,  
And loaded deep,  
As it can be,  
But not as deep,  
As love am I,  
Don't care if I,  
Should live or die..."

The timer on the bottle warmer buzzed softly and Gerard took out the bottle, gave it a shake then took off the cap and tested the temperature on the inside of his wrist. Satisfied that the milk was neither too hot, or too cold, he walked over to the armchair by the fireplace and sat down, offering the bottle to Shilah once he was comfortable. Shilah fussed for a moment, then took the teet, sucking happily.

"The water is wide,  
I can't get over.  
Neither have I, the wings to fly.

So, go and get me to a boat to carry both,  
My love and I.

To carry both,  
My love and I."

Tears slipped down Gerard’s cheeks as he ended the song and continued to hum softly, the sound comforting his tiny son, and himself. He wondered if it was too early to try calling Frank, but looking at the clock on the wall above the mantle, he saw that it wasn’t even five am yet, so it was _definitely_ too early...it wouldn’t even be four in San Diego. Sighing sadly, he refocused on Shilah, noting that he was nearly half way through his bottle already. He smiled.

"You _were_ hungry, _weren’t_ you angel boy."

Shilah’s eyes were fluttering as he fed, sleep calling him back...just a few more minutes and he’d be ready to be burped, then put back down in his crib...if Gerard could bare letting him go that is.

*

Lucas woke at just after six, getting up and going into his bathroom for his morning piss, then getting dressed in warm thermal long johns, two pairs of thick socks and a vest, heavy duty jeans, two thick sweaters and his warmest waxed jacket. He pushed his feet into his waterproof boots, sitting on the edge of the bed to tie the laces, then with a soft kiss to Mikey’s still sleeping forehead, he left the bedroom and headed through to the kitchen for the coffee he needed before he had to brave the bitter temperatures outside.

Walking into the main room, he stopped short...there in the armchair was Gerard, fast asleep with Shilah on his chest.

"Damn..."

He muttered, before setting about restarting the fire in the hearth. He wondered how long they’d been out here, and how long since last night's fire had gone out. Once the flames were crackling and the room started to heat up again, Lucas grabbed the blanket off the back of the couch and gently wrapped it around Gerard and Shilah, careful not to wake them. There was a mostly finished baby bottle on the table next to the chair, so he picked it up and took it to the sink, washing it thoroughly before putting it in the steriliser. When he returned to Gerard’s side, he gently lay his fingers against first his brother's, then his step-father's cheek, checking that they hadn’t gotten too cold before he’d found them there. Shilah was perfectly warm, snuggled in his soft blue blanket, hand knitted by the formidable Miss Beecham...but Gerard seemed rather chilled.

"Damn it!..."

He sighed and went quickly back to his bedroom, regretfully waking Mikey up with a gentle shake to his shoulder.

"Mikey, wake up."

"Hmm?...Lucas?...what time is it?"

"A little after six."

"Ugh...then why am I awake?"

Lucas smiled softly, brushing the back of his fingers against the older man's cheek.

"Because I need to go tend to the horses, and Gerard needs you."

Mikey was awake now, eyes wide as he sat up abruptly.

"Is he Ok?"

"I found him and Shilah asleep in the living room, and the fire had gone out..."

Mikey was out of bed and pulling on his robe in a flash.

"Shilah’s warm, but Gee only had his pyjamas on...I started the fire again."

Lucas said as he followed Mikey out of their bedroom and through the house. Mikey walked quickly to Gerard’s side, leaning over him and gently cupping his cheek. He smiled as his brother stirred slightly.

"Go see to the horses, I’ll take care of him now."

"You sure?"

Lucas asked, resting his hand firmly on Mikey’s lower back, making the older man shiver slightly. Mikey smiled.

"Yeah, it’s all good."

Lucas nodded and left a kiss on his cheek before turning toward the door, grabbing his hat on the way, then disappearing out into the icy morning, closing the door quietly behind him. Mikey sighed, he was really going to miss that young man when he left for the academy.  
Shaking off his ennui, he snuggled into the large armchair beside his brother, wrapping himself around him to make sure he regained a healthy temperature again. Mikey rested his head on Gerard’s shoulder, holding him close and watched little Shilah sleep until his own eyes fluttered shut and he drifted off to join them.

** _Time Stamp~ December 28, 8:17-San Diego time_ **

Frank woke up to the sound of the couple in the next room having rather athletic and vocal intercourse, their bed banging repeatedly against the adjoining wall. He cursed, rolling over and pulling his pillow over his ears...but it did no good; they were too loud, and he was now wide awake.  
Huffing, he got up, walked into the bathroom to relieve himself, washed his hands then returned to the bedroom area. The banging was getting quicker and the voices louder, so he decided to go get some breakfast. Pulling on his jeans then stamping his feet into his boots, he grabbed his keys, wallet, cellphone and room key, then headed out into the mild California morning. The temperature was about 14 degrees in the shade, and though that was low for Californians, Frank found it pleasant enough to go without his jacket. It made him smirk slightly to see all the locals huddled in coats while he was just in shirt sleeves.

The motel didn’t have its own restaurant, or even a cafe, so he got in his rental car and headed out in search of sustenance. It didn’t take long til he found a slightly run down looking diner, but he was pleasantly surprised by how nice the place actually was...once you stepped inside. He ordered a large breakfast plate and a very large black coffee, then sat down in a booth by the window and pulled out his cellphone...time to call home.

He dialled Gerard’s number, but after nine rings it went to voicemail. Frank frowned, looking at his watch...it was gone 8:30, and Gerard was always awake by then. He dialled again, and again it rung through to voicemail. Huffing slightly, he dialled Lucas' number. After three rings, Lucas picked up.

"Hi dad, how’s Cali?"

Frank heard horses through the phone and could picture his son up there on Cherry, wrapped up in his thick coat against the harsh weather as he tended to their herd.

"Warmer than Montana..."

They both chuckled.

"Lucas, I tried calling Gerard just now, but he didn’t answer. Is he ok?"

Lucas frowned slightly, working out the best thing to say, that wouldn’t worry Frank and have him on the next plane home...though maybe that would be a good thing.

"He’s ok, just didn’t sleep well last night. Mikey’s looking after him and Shilah while I’m seeing to the horses. Oh, and I brought Jet and the kittens inside. They’re in the laundry room now, under the counter."

"Oh, Ok. Can you get Gerard to call me when he wakes up?"

"Sure thing. So how’s it going down there?...any leads?"

"Well, LA was a bust, but I got a possible lead from this old guy who said they were headed to San Diego...so that’s where I am now."

"San Diego's pretty big though, isn’t it?"

Frank huffed.

"Yeah, but he said they’d mentioned a golf club, so I’m gonna start with that...after breakfast."

Lucas chuckled.

"Good idea; fill up the tank first."

Frank grinned, laughing quietly as the waitress brought over his coffee.

"Yeah, then I’ll start asking round. Look Lucas, I know Wolf said he was going back to the reservation, but I still don’t trust him 100%, so I want you to keep your guard up, you hear me?"

"Yeah dad, I’ll keep my eyes and ears open. You just take care of yourself."

"I will. Now please, get Gee to call me?"

"Ok dad. Love ya."

"Love you too son. Talk soon."

Frank hung up just as the waitress delivered his breakfast. He nodded and thanked her politely, then got stuck in.

*

When Gerard awoke, he felt overly warm and a little bit squished. He opened his eyes to find that Mikey was laying practically on top of him in the chair, asleep, while Shilah let out tiny noises as he started to wake up.

"Good morning sir..."

Gerard murmured softly to his son as pretty eyes fluttered open to look up at him.

"Sleep well?"

"No..."

Mikey answered, making Gerard startle slightly as the younger man opened his eyes, but didn’t move from his somewhat uncomfortable position.

"I was too worried about you."

Gerard raised an eyebrow in question.

"Why?"

Mikey levered himself out of the chair and headed toward the coffee pot, starting it and fetching two mugs from the shelf above. He turned back to his brother.

"The fire went out. Lucas found you two sleeping in here in the cold..."

Gerard’s eyes widened as he quickly started to check that Shilah was alright.

"He’s ok..."

Mikey assured, moving to sit on the arm of the chair to Gerard’s left, wiggling his fingers at his tiny nephew.

"He was warm enough in his blankets, it was _you_ we were concerned with."

"I-I'm fine..."

Gerard said quietly, looking down. After a moment, he looked up again.

"What time is it? Did Frank call?"

Mikey looked over at the mantle clock.

"It’s just gone 10. I’ll go grab your cell...is it on your nightstand?"

Gerard nodded as Mikey stood back up and headed toward the bedrooms. He tickled Shilah's cheek with his fingertip as the tiny infant stared up with wide, pretty eyes.

"You miss you daddy, Shilah?..."

He murmured softly, smiling.

"Yeah, me too."

"Here you go..."

Mikey said as he walked back in, handing Gerard his cellphone.

"It was on the floor."

Gerard looked up, eyebrows raised.

"On the floor?!...but I _know_ I left it on the nightstand..."

He looked down at the phone in his hand curiously.

"How the Hell did it get on the floor?"

Mikey shrugged.

"Who knows...ghosts maybe?"

Gerard giggled, looking up.

"Ghosts?...Mikey, you’re not ten, and we are _not_ playing ghostbusters...got it?"

Mikey waved his hands in the air, a playful look in his eyes.

"But moooom."

He whined. Gerard snorted, rolling his eyes.

"Whatever, just don’t cross the beams."

They both laughed and Mikey returned to the coffee pot as Gerard dialled Frank's number. Frank answered on the first ring...

"Gerard?"

"Hi Frankie, sleep well?"

"I didn’t have you in my arms baby, so no. You?"

Gerard shook his head as he accepted a mug of hazelnut coffee from his brother with a small smile.

"Not really. I miss you so much Frank. When are you coming home?"

Frank sighed heavily, leaning his head back against the wall behind him.

"I don’t know love, soon...I hope."

"Me too..."

Gerard sniffed, smiling gratefully as Mikey took Shilah from his arms and set about feeding him.

"We _all_ hope you’ll be home soon."

Frank chuckled humourlessly.

"So, tell me what’s going on...has Wolf shown his face at all?"

Gerard giggled slightly, shaking his head.

"No, no sign of him...Mikey _does_ think we’ve got a ghost though."

Frank laughed loudly, ignoring the odd looks he got from people passing by...Gerard was the only one who ever brought this side out of him.

"A ghost?...really?"

He asked after he’d stopped laughing. Gerard giggled and preceded to tell him everything, as he sat curled up in the big chair by the fire, happily watching as Mikey fed baby Shilah opposite him on the couch.


End file.
